Eastern Europe

Retail volume sales of cigarettes continued to decline in Lithuania in 2023. Consumers are increasingly aware of the health risks associated with smoking, a concern further amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic, which created additional impetus for…

As was the case throughout the review period, cigarettes in North Macedonia saw retail volume sales contract in 2023 as smoking prevalence among the adult population continued to fall in line with rising health-consciousness. Having recently become…

Sales of cigarettes experienced a slight decline in volume terms in 2023. Sales saw strong growth in 2022 as large numbers of refuges entered Poland following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. In 2023, many of these refugees from Ukraine returned to…

Cigarettes saw strong growth in retail volume terms in 2023. Sales were boosted by the end of the pandemic and the return to more normalised behaviour in terms of work and socialising. The end of the pandemic lowered concerns about the complications…

There was a slight fall in volume sales of cigarettes in Serbia in 2023. This was partly due to continuing population decline. Price hikes and tax hikes, along with high inflation, also dampened volume sales somewhat. However, smoking prevalence only…

Slovakia’s cigarettes market continued to decline in 2023 after new excise taxes were introduced, leaving smokers under growing economic pressure to downgrade to more affordable cigarettes or seek out alternatives. Rising demand for soft cigarette…

The consumption of cigarettes is declining in Slovenia. Constant campaigns to educate consumers about the dangers of smoking are helping to drive an ongoing decline in smoking prevalence and in the actual number of smokers of cigarettes. New plain…

A worsening economic situation in 2023 had a significant effect on cigarettes in the Czech Republic. While lower than in 2022, the rate of inflation in the Czech Republic remained high, exerting upward pressure on production and transportation costs…

Cigarettes saw a slight rise in volume sales in Ukraine in 2023. This came after several years of marked volume decline. Amongst the reasons for this upturn in volumes were the low starting base following a steep decline in the previous year because…

Cigars and cigarillos continued to achieve moderate double-digit retail volume growth in Bosnia Herzegovina in 2023 as consumer demand among niche consumer groups and cigar aficionados remained stable. Both the cigars and cigarillos categories remain…

The economy segment of cigars and cigarillos in Bulgaria has been most heavily impacted by the rising cost of living and high rate of inflation in 2023. The large consumer base of cigar and cigarillo smokers are switching to cheaper alternatives,…

Cigars, cigarillos and smoking tobacco in Croatia continued to see retail volume growth in 2023. The growing interest in cigars among a wider range of consumers pushed up retail volume sales. Previously, cigars were predominantly smoked by…

The performance of cigars, cigarillos and smoking tobacco in Estonia in 2023 diverged according to category. Cigars and, to a much lesser extent, cigarillos saw faster retail volume growth, compared to 2022, while smoking tobacco saw a stronger…

There was a significant increase in volume sales of cigars, cigarillos and smoking tobacco in Georgia in 2023. This was partly due to an increase in population, as there were increased numbers of immigrants from Russia, as a result of the war in…

Cigars, cigarillos and smoking tobacco in Hungary saw overall category volume sales fall in 2023. Volume sales of smoking tobacco continued to drop, exacerbated by a more challenging household economic situation. With lower disposable incomes and…

The year 2023 witnessed significant declines in the demand for cigars and cigarillos in Latvia. This downward trend is indicative of the niche status and limited demand for these products. In the case of cigars, the sales decline observed in 2023…

The cigarillos category did not see much positive activity in Lithuania in 2023. The major competitive battles are fought outside this category, leaving it with little attention from market players and consumers. However, the government did not…

Fine cut tobacco was the most dynamic performer within cigars, cigarillos and smoking tobacco in North Macedonia in retail volume growth terms in 2023. This product type continued to gain ground as an economical substitute for cigarettes as unit…

Sales of fine cut tobacco declined in retail volume terms in 2023. Like cigarettes, this category received a sales boost in 2022 as large numbers of refugees entered Poland following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. However, in 2023 the influence of…

The pandemic led to changes in lifestyle and smoking patterns with increased interest in cigars, cigarillos, pipe tobacco and fine cut tobacco. These products were seen as exotic and tapped into the increasing search for new experiences. Although the…

Both cigars and cigarillos registered volume growth in Serbia in 2024, unlike cigarettes, which saw volume sales fall. One reason for the positive performance of cigars and cigarillos is that the price gap between cigarettes and cigars and cigarillos…

Cigars, cigarillos and smoking tobacco in Slovakia saw excise taxes rise sharply in 2023. This move attempted to improve the situation of the Slovak fiscal budget. However, in combination with squeezed household budgets. of Slovak households, raised…

Cigars and cigarillos saw steady growth in current value terms in 2023 with cigars seeing the strongest growth. The premiumisation trend was behind the strong value growth seen in cigars, with some consumers seeking a high quality and luxurious…

Overall, cigars, cigarillos and smoking tobacco in the Czech Republic registered a moderate decrease in retail volume sales in 2023. However, this was mainly due to the decrease in retail volume sales of fine cut tobacco, which dominates in terms of…

Cigars and cigarillos saw a double-digit decline in volume sales in Ukraine in 2023, while smoking tobacco volumes also fell during the year. Both the cigars and cigarillos, and the smoking tobacco categories have suffered significantly during…

Sustainability has become a prominent theme in the 21st century, especially in light of rising urbanisation, which is putting more pressure on infrastructure and quality of life. The report analyses sustainability across seven key areas: water,…

The briefing introduces the Cities Households Necessities Spending Index. The index ranks 1,075 cities by household expenditure on non-discretionary items, namely food, housing, and clothing and footwear. This analysis focuses on 160 major cities.…

While coffee is expected to register double-digit current value growth, volume sales are expected to fall marginally. A couple of factors are expected to lead to the slight volume decline. Continuing price rises dampen volume sales, as does…

Instant coffee in Bulgaria is experiencing a phase of stagnation, primarily due to the outdated perception of instant coffee compared to more modern alternatives like capsule coffee and bean-grinding machines. The demographic of instant coffee users…

Croatians love their coffee, but it is a mature product with little room for growth. Also, in 2023, with prices still rising, this puts a further dampening effect on coffee, with both volume and constant value sales expected to fall. Continuing…

Eastern Europe is a market of growing coffee culture. Below average per capita consumption and increasing interest to coffee in region points to high untapped market potential. Further growth is achievable through improved product offer in fresh…

Fresh coffee recorded the fastest volume and value growth in 2023 due to the rising demand for natural products. As coffee is the most popular hot drink in Estonia and thanks to the growing emphasis on healthy living, Estonians are willing to pay…

While coffee remains the most popular hot drink in Georgia in 2023, it is expected to register retail volume decline for the second year in a row. Significant price hikes is dampening volume sales, with consumes also trading down to cheaper brands.…

The Hungarian coffee industry faced headwinds in 2023 due to deteriorating economic conditions and rising prices. Consumers became more price-sensitive, opting for cheaper private label coffee products or even reducing their overall coffee…

Retail volume sales of coffee saw a stagnant performance in 2023, as the high cost of living affected consumer purchasing behaviour. Forced to spend more on utilities and food, Latvians shifted away towards more affordable products. The market also…

Retail volume sales of coffee in Lithuania declined in 2023 for the third consecutive year. While the landscape is saturated, economic uncertainty hindered volume sales, as rising price sensitivity and ongoing inflation reduced disposable incomes. In…

In 2023, coffee achieved very strong off-trade value growth. Whilst retail volume growth was moderate, significant unit price increases across all coffee categories, including the largest ones such as standard fresh ground coffee, led to a…

High inflation continues to exert a strong impact on the coffee category in 2023, putting pressure on all parts of the industry, from production to consumption. Coffee production is labour intensive, but also incurs costs in terms of fertilizers,…

Coffee registered a retail volume decline in 2023, with retail value sales growth being the result of rising unit prices, high inflation and increasing costs for energy, transport and logistics. In addition, the price of the raw coffee bean grew,…

The substantial rise in coffee prices has decelerated the growth of coffee volume sales in Serbia. Notably, only coffee pods have experienced an upward trend, primarily due to an expanding consumer base and relatively lower market maturity. The…

Retail current value sales of coffee were driven by sharp rises in average current unit prices towards the end of the review period, as the prices of commodities and production and supply costs increased substantially. This led to thriftier shopping…

Whilst fresh ground coffee is the dominant choice in Slovenia, instant coffee is gaining popularity from a lower volume base. In 2023, instant coffee mixes are the fastest growing product in the category driven by the convenience trend. Instant…

High inflation from 2022 in the wake of the war in Ukraine and subsequent increases in prices of goods and energy continued in 2023. The overall economic situation in the country worsened and increased the cost of living for Czech households.…

Coffee is by far the most popular category within hot drinks in Ukraine but the category has seen heavy losses since Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Sales plummeted in 2022 as large numbers of consumers fled the country while foodservice sales were…

Despite the inflationary pressure and significant price increases in 2023, consumer demand for colour cosmetics remained stable in Bosnia and Herzegovina. All categories with the exception of eye shadow posted volume growth and moderate current value…

Due to the relatively high inflation in Bulgaria, mass colour cosmetics continued to grow at a faster pace than premium colour cosmetics in 2023. As the cost of living in Bulgaria remained quite high, people preferred to shop for more affordable…

Demand for facial make-up increased significantly over the course of 2023, with strong growth registered in both the premium and mass segments over the course of the year. Much of this growth was spurred by the very dynamic performance registered in…

Eastern European sales of colour cosmetics recorded a steep decline in 2020. Measures introduced to contain the spread of Coronavirus (COVID-19), such as lockdowns, retail closures and mask-wearing, all had a negative impact on sales. Lip products…

In 2023, colour cosmetics recorded double-digit retail value growth in Estonia, boosted by rising inflation. Price rises led consumers to be more cautious about their spending, with many not wanting to compromise on quality regarding their colour…

Colour cosmetics in Georgia registered moderate constant value and volume growth. Lip products in particular performed well, in terms of value growth, in particular for premium products. In the mass segments, foundation and mascara performed strongly…