Four out of ten Belgians cross the border to do their shopping: how to explain the price differences with our neighbours?

Crossing the border to do your shopping, a trend more entrenched than ever. Four out of ten Belgians are fans of shopping abroad, according to a study. Are our supermarkets really charging too high prices? We fill the shopping cart, we take out the calculators and we compare.

In France, a liter of Coca-Cola costs 1.45 euros at Carrefour. In Belgium, count 1.90 euro at Delhaize. From food to care products, other consumer goods are (much) cheaper across Quiévrain. For example, you pay 2.79 euros for Ax Bodyspray deodorant on the other side of the border, against 4.19 euros here. According to a study by the European Commission, all consumers on the Old Continent could save up to 14 billion euros per year by targeting cheaper points of sale.

How to explain such price differences for products of identical brands? “There are several factors,” says retail expert Pierre-Alexandre Billiet. “First, there is no single market, which means that manufacturers can charge different prices by country in a unified European Union. Belgium is also a complex country with different laws and rules by region, province…”

“But one of the main reasons supermarkets in Belgium charge higher prices is because of the plethora of taxes, excise, levies, VAT… It’s no secret that Belgians pay more tax on drinks. But the tax on packaging, for example, also costs manufacturers more in Belgium than in France and this is passed on to the consumer.

According to figures from the research firm GfK, our companies have lost some 369 million euros in turnover due to cross-border purchases over the past five years. This represents nearly 75 million less revenue per year. “As an individual, you can benefit from cross-border purchases, but that also has a downside,” says Pierre-Alexandre Billiet. “Less revenue means less investment, fewer jobs…”

“It’s been a while since it’s just isolated examples, like the cheaper bottle of soda overseas. The prices of all our food products are under enormous pressure. In Belgium, we should logically pay two to three times more for our food. Consumers feel they are paying too much. But this is totally false. We have never spent so little on food. It represents barely 15% of our budget.”

Belgium does not seem to be (necessarily) the most expensive country for weekly groceries. Our colleagues from Het Laatste Nieuws have filled out a standard basket in order to be able to compare. Result? A-brands cost about 10% more at Albert Heijn in the Netherlands. Surprising when you know that the same brand is waging a real price war in Flanders with Colruyt. “The Dutch pay for the lower prices in Belgium”, confirms Pierre-Alexander Billiet.

“Albert Heijn has many more outlets in the Netherlands than in Belgium, but to compete with Colruyt and other chains in Flanders, they offer a lot of products here at a lower price than in their country of origin. In the meantime, many Flemings are convinced that it is cheaper to shop at this Dutch retailer. But those crossing the border will increasingly find the opposite. Belgium has not been among the most expensive countries to buy for some time now.”

Figures from Eurostat (the statistical office of the European Union) show that Denmark is by far the most expensive country in Europe to purchase consumer goods. “In fact, Belgians mistakenly think that prices are high here. On the contrary, the wide range of different brands in a relatively small territory makes the prices very competitive.”