Sizzling Savings: The Ultimate Summer Shopping Extravaganza

With optimism, full shelves and rock-bottom prices, retailers are officially raising the curtain on the start of the summer sales season which starts on Monday 10 July and runs until Wednesday 31 August, with stores across the country open on Sunday 16 July.

By properly preparing the ground, many commercial businesses have already entered the battle of summer sales with pre-orders and offers both through the digital channel and through physical stores with the aim of liquidating seasonal products and “filling their coffers”.

As the president of the Business & Retail Association of Greece, Antonis Makris, emphasizes while speaking to the Athenian-Macedonian News Agency, “commercial businesses are looking forward to very good turnovers during the summer sales in order to recover the lost sales due to the parliamentary elections and are waiting to serve the Greeks consumers but also tourists with full shelves and tempting prices”.

He adds that the results of a recent survey by SELPE, with the scientific support of the ELTRUN laboratory of the Athens University of Economics, record a consumer public under pressure, in a transitional stage, with the main concern being inflationary pressures on products and a negative, but improving consumer climate in the retail market in Greece.

“The consumer climate is improving and we are optimistic that, despite the pressure of disposable income, the public will take advantage of the opportunities and make profitable purchases satisfying their basic needs” Mr. Makris points out and adds that “a decisive role in further boosting sales of commercial businesses will be played by tourism, which is moving at very good levels”.

“Commercial businesses expect a lot from the upcoming discount period that starts next Monday” says in a statement the president of the Athens ESA Trade Association, Stavros Kafounis on the occasion of the upcoming start of the summer sales. He also adds that “with full shelves, impressive prices, a smile and professionalism, they are ready, as always, to welcome consumers. The needs are many and the expectations even greater.”

At the same time, according to the ESA, commercial enterprises are asked to pay particular attention as according to paragraph 2a of article 15 of Law 4177/2013, as amended by Law 5039/2023, in every price reduction notice the previous price applied by the merchant for a specified period of time before the price reduction was applied.

Also, special care must be taken to comply with the provisions on discounts and reduced prices, as the penalties are heavy. Specifically, according to article 21 of Law 4177/2013, those who violate the law are subject to a fine of an amount equal to 1% of the annual turnover and in any case not lower than 10,000 euros.

In the aggravating case where the discounts are proven to be inaccurate or misleading, a fine is imposed equal to 2% of the annual turnover and in any case not less than 20,000 euros.

Hopes for more consumption

The commercial world of Attica is optimistic, according to the president of E.V.E.P. and P.E.S.A., Vasilis Korkidis. In particular, the commercial world maintains its optimism and has placed its hopes for higher consumption than last year in the increased tourist flows, during the summer sale period, where tourists will also enter the sum of the turnover with “imported consumption”.

Also, Mr. Korkidis points out that clothing and footwear, which have priority in the preferences of consumers in regular sales, maintain, since the beginning of the year, a double positive sign with +2% in turnover and +4% in volume sales, confirming a comparatively lower rate of price increase.

“What is desired is for the significant strengthening of consumer confidence in the market to continue during the summer discount period, so that all consumers can “take advantage” of favorable prices and retail businesses can increase their turnover and sales volume,” he emphasizes.

The goal of this year’s discount period, according to Mr. Korkidis, is to manage as an “antidote” to limit “national inflation” by at least half a unit. In fact, he notes that the retail trade, once again, will “put its back” to overcome the high inflation in food, with the CPI persisting at 10.4%.

“We hope that this year too, the discounted prices will reach and attract consumers, so that they work together, in favor of income and turnover. The aim of the retail trade this summer is for the total turnover of the two months of July-August to move above last year’s benchmark of 6 billion euros and to reach 7 billion euros this year. “Besides, in the retail trade, current sales increased by 9.8%, with the amount of stocks de-escalating, while the evolution of sales recently shows that they fluctuate steadily at 3.4 billion euros per month,” he underlines.

As far as consumers are concerned, once again they should be very careful in their purchases during the sales period. The Union of Consumer Workers of Greece points out, among other things, that the original and the new reduced price of the products should be clearly indicated at the points where the offered products are sold, with reference to the appropriate unit of measurement per product.

Each price reduction announcement indicates the previous price applied by the trader for a specified period of time before the price reduction was applied. Also, when conducting discounts, in addition to indicating the old and new reduced price of the goods and services sold at a discount, the indication and commercial communication of the discount percentage is also allowed.

Stock or Outlet stores are required to display the old sale price, deleted and the new reduced sale price, in a way that communicates to the consumer the clear distinction between these two prices.

It is noted that if the discounts, offers or any announcement regarding a price reduction is inaccurate or misleading as to the percentage of the discount or as to the prices or as to the quantity of the products offered at a discount or on offer or involves any form of concealment or deception, a fine is imposed on the merchant.

If the trader is fined a second time for the same infringement within a period of five years, the maximum amount of the fine is increased to 4% of his annual turnover.

With information from APE-MPE