Locals leave, 'low cost' tourists come: Consumption in restaurants falls, sales of alcoholic beverages in markets increases

Contrary to what was expected for the month of August, consumption started to increase in bars and restaurants, compared to the months of June-July 2024, the situation appears difficult for these structures.

At the peak of the tourist season, in the middle of August, bars and restaurants report a decrease in consumption compared to years.

The Chairman of the Association of Bars and Restaurants Enri Jahja told Monitor that compared to years, consumption in bars and restaurants has decreased by an average of 20%. The main reasons for the reduction in consumption, according to him, remain the departure of locals outside of Albania in the tourist season and the arrival of "low cost" tourists.

"The decline in consumption in bars and restaurants is general in all tourist areas. This is due to the rapid depopulation and the addition of low cost airlines that cannot bring category A tourists", he asserts.

While there is a decrease in consumption in bars and restaurants, if we refer to alcoholic beverages and wines, the highest sales of domestic production are concentrated in the supermarket segment, rather than in HoReCa (Hotel-Restaurant and Catering).

But despite the fact that more is being sold in supermarkets, local producers of alcoholic beverages and wine claim that compared to years, the demand is decreasing.

Denis Zhilla, the director of sales of one of the largest canteens of drinks in the country "Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu", told Monitor that compared to years, sales have decreased by 10%.

"The tourist season is not like last year. This means there is a 10% decrease in sales compared to years", he underlines. Žilla claims that of the total sales, 70% of them are in the market segment and 30% of drinks and wine are sold in the HoReCa segment. During last year's tourist season, the sales of the "Skënderbeu" winery were 30% higher than in 2022 , from the increase in tourists.

A decrease was also noted in imports of the "Beverages, alcohols and vinegars" group. According to INSTAT data for the months of January-June 2024, 86.4 million liters of alcoholic beverages and vinegar were imported. Compared to last year, imports fell by 1%.

This year, according to the director of sales Denis Zhilla, the decrease in the consumption of domestic production has been influenced by the increase in prices in all sectors of the economy during the tourist season.

In the coastal areas of the south this tourist season, in addition to the increase in prices of accommodation structures (including hotels, apartments and villas) up to 30% compared to last year, there was also an increase of up to 15% in prices in bars and restaurants. The tightening of prices affected consumption, reducing it.

The President of the Association of Bars and Restaurants Enri Jahja says that the increase in prices was influenced by a number of factors, such as: the fall of the euro, the increase in staff salaries over 40% compared to years, from the increase in expenses up to 30% of rents for the accommodation of waiters or cooks employed as seasonal, as well as the increase in the prices of raw materials up to 30%.

Last year, prices in bars and restaurants increased by 17%, while consumption in the summer months increased by 30% compared to 2022.

Jahja predicts that this situation will lead to the bankruptcy and closure of a number of local bar and restaurant structures.

In the summer months of 2023, consumption in bars and restaurants increased by 20% compared to 2022 due to the high influx of tourists according to the Bar and Restaurant Association. The downward trend of consumption returned after the end of the tourist season. Among the internal factors that influenced the decline in consumption after the departure of tourists were the consumer's uncertainty about spending due to economic difficulties, as well as the "fear" of being exposed in restaurants of individuals who own dirty money, from the investigations of initiated by SPAK./D.Azo/MONITOR