The Easter market saw satisfactory activity, with no significant problems, the General Secretary of the Pancyprian Retail Trade Association (PASYLE), Marios Antoniou, has said.
As Antoniou told CNA, there were different conditions this year compared to previous years, due to the war in the Middle East and foot-and-mouth disease, although, as he pointed out, the retail sector has also faced a series of other crises in recent years.
“Despite the concern, at least so far, the supply chain has not been disrupted. There was an adequate supply of products in the market, and we did not experience any shortages,” he said.
He also noted that, despite the new conditions, there whad been no price increases in products. “The increases observed in lamb were not related to the war, but to foot-and-mouth disease,” he added.
However, he also pointed out that the new circumstances are affecting consumer psychology, which is closely linked to consumption. Nevertheless, “overall, the market moved at satisfactory levels, both in terms of footfall and consumption,” he said, noting that both supermarkets and shopping malls saw considerable activity.
Noting that Easter can not be compared to Christmas, which is the most commercial period for the entire retail sector, Antoniou said that the Easter period is usually focused on “supermarkets, bakeries, and butcher shops.”
“Under the circumstances, we are quite satisfied,” he added.
Regarding the rest of the retail sector, such as clothing and footwear, the PASYLE General Secretary noted that weather conditions play a particularly important role. “Low temperatures did not encourage people to go out and shop for the new season's collections. We expect that in the immediate period ahead, once temperatures stabilise, activity in these sectors will increase.”
Antoniou also said that retail stores in purely tourist areas performed at lower levels, since these areas are directly linked to tourism. “April was lost due to hotel cancellations, and retail trade was also affected. We hope that things will improve in the tourism sector, because the benefits of tourism are also reflected in retail, especially in purely tourist areas,” he said.
(Source: CNA)
