TRENDS
The economic recession has altered the way in which many Greeks entertain themselves and use consumer foodservice, specifically by encouraging them to focus more on prices and product quality. Consumers are now less willing to leave their homes to spend money and when they do so, they tend to choose a consumer foodservice outlet carefully. At the same time, demand for coffee-based beverages remains high, and the focus on product quality applies very much to coffee. In light of this, Greek consumers have increasingly been turning away from bars and nightclubs towards cafés and specialist coffee shops, while gradually shifting towards neighbourhood outlets and takeaway options as ways to reduce their spending.
COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE
Mikel Cafe SA led cafés/bars in Greece in 2015 with a 1% value share, accounting for 51% of value sales in specialist coffee shops. The gap between Mikel Cafe and second-placed Goody’s SA is increasing as the company continues to grow rapidly as it expands its outlet network. The company has used franchising as the basis of its outlet network expansion and this has led to solid ground for development due to the large numbers of Greeks who wish to start their own consumer foodservice businesses, mainly with the somewhat safer option of being a part of a franchise business.
PROSPECTS
Cafés/bars in Greece is expected to continue undergoing changes during the forecast period, with the channel’s orientation shifting towards ‘traditional Greek’ formats and the new hybrid operations of grocery stores and cafés on the one hand and more ‘contemporary style’ specialist coffee shops on the other. There are two main reasons for these changes and this first is the increased demand for coffee, both as a takeaway item and as the main focus of demand and this is likely to be seen mainly in the development and expansion of specialist coffee shops and the greater attention being paid to the day part of the operations of outlets that double as cafés and bars. The second reason is the growing demand for outlet concepts and menu options of Greek origin as well as low prices, which can be expected to continue driving sales in the channel towards traditional coffee houses and independent, neighbourhood-based cafés/bars as well as new hybrid operations.
Source: www.euromonitor.com
