Commuters shop

Hungary boosts sales in the food retail sector

(Bild: stock.adobe.com null)

Business is currently going well in the domestic food trade. One reason for this is the large number of customers from neighboring countries who are increasingly doing their shopping here.

Cars with Hungarian license plates can often be seen in the parking lots in front of local supermarkets or shopping centers. Customers from the neighboring country often do their daily shopping here, many of them are commuters and work in Burgenland.

Locations near the border benefit
In the food retail sector, this is also reflected in sales. "We are seeing a positive trend, especially in stores near the border," explains Marcus Schober, press spokesman for the supermarket chain Billa. Customers from Hungary mostly shop in Burgenland because of the price and quality of the products. Confectionery, for example, is particularly popular. This also secures the locations in Burgenland. "We are currently looking for 40 apprentices," says Schober. Compared to Hungary, there would also be a denser branch network.

"Value for money is an issue"
The Spar retail chain has made similar observations in its stores. "We have a high proportion of Hungarian customers, especially in locations close to the border," reports advertising manager Hannes Glavanovits. According to employees in these stores, the proportion of Hungarian customers is between 30 and 40 percent. "S-budget products and promotional items are particularly in demand - so value for money is an issue," Glavanovits continues. The employees in the stores also report that some products are preferably bought in Austria because they taste better to customers than comparable products in Hungary,

Manfred Moyes, chairman of the food trade in Burgenland.(Bild: WKB)

According to Manfred Moyes, Chairman of the Burgenland food trade, around 20,000 Hungarians commute to work in the country every day: "Not only do we urgently need them as reliable employees - on their way back, they usually do their shopping in Burgenland due to the high quality of the food, which is a win-win situation for the domestic food trade."

The last major analysis of purchasing power inflows for the domestic retail sector dates back to 2022, when, according to the Chamber of Commerce, Hungarian customers spent 168 million euros in Burgenland.