PRAGUE – Czechs are helping local producers and manufacturers during the pandemic. Sales of Czech goods increased by 40% year-on-year during the second wave of the pandemic. At the same time, Slevomat records twice as many sellers trying to offer their goods online due to business restrictions caused by government measures.
"Small retailers cannot compete on their own with the large and established e‑shops. Online sales are far from compensating for the hole in their turnover caused by the closure of retail stores," comments Ladislav Veselý, director of Slevomat, adding that smaller retailers are looking for potential in merging with larger companies. An example of this is the fruit wines produced by Roman Štěpaník from Ostrava. He usually sells them at markets, but even they have been hit by strict government measures. "We produce our wines from the best quality raw materials available in the Czech Republic. We do not use fruit concentrates. We cold-press the fruit fresh. And if some of the raw materials are not available in the Czech Republic, we select the best quality ones from abroad. For example, organic sea buckthorn comes from Siberia," explains Štěpaník.
Hana Macháčková, whose specialty is baked teas, has been selling them on Slevomat since the beginning. "It's been 10 years since I baked my first baked tea!" says Macháčková. Her daughter inspired her to start the business. Her friends were the first to like the teas, followed soon after by customers from the farmers' markets in Pilsen and also Slevomat customers. "Thanks to this, other café and shop owners found out about us. With more sales, our product range was able to expand," explains the entrepreneur, explaining how significantly online sales have moved her forward.
Sales data shows that customers are in solidarity with local producers and try to support them with their purchases. Some retailers still try not to rely only on online sales, but also try to maintain direct sales where possible. This is most often in the form of a window display. This sometimes also serves as an outlet for the e‑shop.
A survey of 2,000 restaurant and pub operators showed that, for example, one in ten sell beer and food via a takeaway. But their sales are less than half of last year.