Norwegians have a tendency to book travel products and services well in advance of their trips. This is especially true when it comes to leisure travel abroad, whether for short breaks or lengthier holidays. Intermediaries have long encouraged this behaviour by aggressively marketing spring and summer packages to sunnier destinations in southern Europe and other regions – colloquially known as “Syden” (the south) – during the cold winter months. Aside from generating off-season revenue, this…

Norwegians have a tendency to book travel products and services well in advance of their trips. This is especially true when it comes to leisure travel abroad, whether for short breaks or lengthier holidays. Intermediaries have long encouraged this behaviour by aggressively marketing spring and summer packages to sunnier destinations in southern Europe and other regions – colloquially known as “Syden” (the south) – during the cold winter months. Aside from generating off-season revenue, this…

Travel agencies and intermediaries have been hard hit by the coronavirus crisis and even early on in the pandemic’s progress several agencies placed some employees on unpaid leave and laid off others. Many are struggling to survive amid mass cancellations and a lack of new bookings. Players decry the first aid package of ILS8 billion presented by the Israeli government, claiming that its form of low-interest loans is of little help given that they still need to be repaid from substantially…

Travel intermediaries in Finland have been hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. Packaged holidays were cancelled from the middle of March as demand for bookings dropped and border closures prevented consumers from travelling. There are also serious concerns in the industry about refunds for cancelled trips. Many service providers in destination countries have not returned the money for cancelled trips, but by law Finnish consumers are entitled to receive a refund. This places pressure on…

Global Online Travel Sales and Intermediaries Market Competition, Opportunities and ChallenOffline intermediaries will be harshly impacted by the outbreak of COVID-19, with sales plummeting in 2020 overall. Due to the national lockdown that was implemented from March onwards, intermediaries in Ecuador were forced to close from March through to May. During this time, sales came to a halt, and agencies had to give refunds to many customers which made the situation even worse. Even as…

Though sales were halted as Colombia’s borders shut down, travel agencies continued to work throughout the early stages of the crisis, and few closed their doors. Operators rearranged reservations for clients, and several companies gathered their teams together to strategize. Plans on how best to commercialise their products in the medium- and long-term have led to investment in social media communications and customer contact, upgrading and strengthening online distribution channels, new…

While overall the wearable electronics category saw a positive retail volume performance in 2020, sales were particularly driven by smart wearables and activity watches (digital). Although still registering notable volume growth, performance was below that of previous years, especially as the Brazilian market relies a lot on imported items, and the 30% devaluation of the Brazilian real discouraged many consumers from investing in these items. Another important factor having a negative effect…

Despite COVID-19, the portable players category still registered double-digit growth in 2020. This was driven by the positive performance of wireless speakers, as every other category saw steeper negative growth, or in the case of e-readers, dropped from a positive performance into negative growth territory. Despite the challenges posed by COVID-19 in terms of both distribution and consumers’ available incomes and willingness to spend, wireless speakers, used in conjunction with the…

Retail volume sales of mobile phones were negatively affected in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and resultant economic crisis, and the impact of this on consumer confidence. With rising unemployment, many consumers adopted more conservative shopping patterns, postponing the replacement of old devices, or investing in simpler, more affordable models. The current devaluation of the Brazilian real against the US dollar damaged unit price dynamics in the country, with entry-level models…

The in-car entertainment category suffered from the combination of social isolation measures and economic instability arising from COVID-19. The performance of in-car entertainment is closely related to the performance of the automotive industry in Brazil, and rising unemployment, coupled with limited available income, resulted in a discouraging scenario for consumers to invest in either new cars, or upgrading existing vehicles’ components. Furthermore, either to overcome financial…

After a slightly better year in terms of retail volume sales in 2019, imaging devices saw steeper negative growth in 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. With such products widely perceived as non-essential, particularly given the increasing penetration of smart phones, digital imaging devices have struggled to appeal to consumers. The ever-increasing technological advancements in smartphone cameras continue to discourage consumers from investing in a dedicated imaging devices. This…

Within home video almost all categories saw steeper negative growth in 2020 than in 2019 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The only category to remain positive in 2020 was OLED TVs, and even this saw a much weaker performance than the previous year. The video players category continued to register double-digit negative growth as consumers moved to digital alternatives. As a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic and long-term quarantine, many Brazilians invested in upgrades to their…

The home audio and cinema category was already suffering in Brazil due to the economic crisis of 2015-2019, from which it was struggling to recover. With the COVID-19 pandemic, sales were even more negatively affected, resulting in a stronger decrease than in previous years. The category suffered as consumers prioritised spending elsewhere. Almost all categories within home audio and cinema dropped into negative growth territory in 2020. The only exception was home cinema and speaker…

The consumer electronics market in Brazil was adversely impacted by COVID-19, as consumers prioritised spending elsewhere, or delayed replacement purchases. This pandemic compounded the economic difficulties the country already faced following the economic crisis of 2015-2019, from which it was struggling to recover. As a result, the majority of categories dropped into negative growth, or saw even steeper declines than in 2019. However, a few categories benefited from the home seclusion…

The COVID-19 pandemic had a direct impact on sales of computers and peripherals in 2020, especially due to the consolidation of home-schooling models, e-learning and hybrid models for adult education, and changes in the work environment. Although consumers prefer to purchase such products on significant dates such as Black Friday and Christmas, due to generous promotions and discounts available, many were forced to make purchases in the first semester, when the quarantine began. All…

The outbreak of COVID-19 has accelerated a trend which began during the latter half of 2019, whereby Australian consumers began to show a marked preference for domestically manufactured products. The pandemic has heightened safety concerns related to the handling of imported products at ports and conditions at the origin of manufacture. Studies suggest that as the pandemic progresses, more and more Australians are shifting towards products made in Australia, which has led to greater consumer…

The COVID-19 outbreak coincided with the Chinese New Year. As a result, measures implemented to contain the disease were in place during what is traditionally the peak season for foodservice outlets, with people gathering together and dining out during the season’s festivities. This had a marked negative impact on sales of sauces, dressings and condiments through foodservice channels. However, retail saw a positive effect, as demand shifted towards sauces, dressings and condiments required…

Store cards remain negligible in Vietnam due to the strict control and management of consumer credit by the government, which means complicated paperwork and a lack of transparency in related businesses processes. The only well-known store card in the country was previously issued by the Starbucks chain of specialist coffee shops. However, there are numerous unused cards in circulation as one account can have multiple cards.

Euromonitor International's Store Card Transactions in Vietnam…

Currently, there are no store cards with “pay later” options available in Turkey. All cards issued by retailers are closed-loop pre-paid cards that enable payment in specific retail outlets. Over the forecast period, prospects for store cards remain weak as consumers seeking “pay later” functionality have the established option of credit cards.

Euromonitor International's Store Card Transactions in Turkey report establishes the size and structure of the market for ATMs cards, smart…