Keystone-SDA | Wednesday, 07 August 2024
Sales in the Swiss retail sector shrank in the first half of the year. (Archive image)
According to the market research institute GfK, sales in the Swiss retail sector fell in the first half of 2024. They fell by 0.5 percent, as the “Market Monitor” published on Wednesday shows. One reason for this was the bad weather.
The non-food sector clearly declined in the first half of the year. Sales there fell by 4.0 percent, while they increased by 1.6 percent in the food and near-food segment, according to GfK. Meanwhile, according to the Federal Statistical Office (BFS), inflation was 1.3 percent in June.
The retail trade was affected by seasonal weather changes and temperature fluctuations, the institute continued. The heavy rain in June, for example, and the weak consumer sentiment had a negative impact on the purchasing behavior of the Swiss.
The fashion sector suffered from this, with sales of swimwear and beachwear, summer clothing, sunglasses and headgear falling. In the leisure segment, retailers lost sales, particularly in the sale of water sports and outdoor products. Thanks to the European Football Championships, business with football clothing was good.
Retailers recorded a decline in home electronics. After the high demand for technical consumer goods in the last three years in the wake of the corona pandemic, a market saturation can be observed, according to GfK. At least product groups such as hair styling devices, electric toothbrushes, deep fryers, headsets and projectors performed better than in the previous year.
Meanwhile, online shopping remains the trend. According to the figures, sales by Swiss consumers grew by around 3 percent in the first half of the year compared to the same period last year.
