About Retail
The Egyptian retail sector is a promising sector, because of the massive population of Egypt and its continuous increase, as well as the increase in the levels of salary. The aforementioned leads to the increase of household spending in all sub-sectors of retail, as well as providing long-term consumption opportunities in the Egyptian market, based on the purchase of non-essential and creative materials by young people whom salary levels have increased.Egypt has enjoyed a more stable political and economic environment over the past five years, which renewed and increased the interest in developing retail facilities. Consequently, a wide range of modern forms of convenience stores such as supermarkets, hypermarkets, department stores and malls are expected to spread further across the country to fulfill the needs of the youth population of wealthier urban areas in new and smart capitals. This is due to the increase of awareness and demand from the main age group of wages in Egypt, which is between the ages of 20-39 years old. Huge shopping malls, in a country where almost the third of its population is between the ages of 20-39 years old, are an important indicator that reflects the increase of household spending in the retail sector.Global retail groups are attracted to Egypt due to its large and growing population, the majority of this population are among the youth, and the increasing number of middle-income families. Furthermore, for regional and international retailers, Egypt provides the opportunity to enter a strong retail market that is far from sufficiency and have potentials for growth.The spread of the Corona virus in the first half of 2020 had negative repercussions on the Egyptian markets, and the growth of the retail trade sector was likely to slow down than expected on the short term. However, this did not happen as consumer spending shifted radically towards e-commerce. Since the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the Coronavirus a global pandemic on March 11, 2020, online sales for Egyptian merchants have doubled. It is expected that such sales in Egypt will exceed the sales of on ground retail stores, and it is likely that traditional stores will not return to their previous popularity. In light of the Corona crisis, new challenges have arisen in the daily life of the consumer. Although consumption grew in the first quarter of 2020, that growth was mainly driven by purchases of non-food items for the first time in a long time. Considering this change in consumer habits, food prices decreased, while the demand for health and self-care products, as well as medicines, increased. Their prices began to increase, and fear of the epidemic, or what is known as the “panic buying" phenomenon, contributed to the increase in their prices. Hence, relying on e-commerce in terms of selling products and providing services was a way out of the crisis.Long-term consumption opportunities are likely to exist in the Egyptian market, based on the purchase of non-essential and creative materials by young consumers whom salary levels have been increased. The demand for groceries remains constant for most Egyptians, and most groceries are still exempted from taxes in Egypt. The aforementioned is due to the State's tendency to expand the establishment of commercial malls and combined markets, in order to control the prices and prevent monopoly, and this comes within the framework of the economic reform program, in addition to the importance of investing in this sector, especially chains. In addition, Egypt witness an urban expansion by the establishment of new cities, and adopts strategies to face the challenges of moving and migrating brands and shopping centers to new cities.The first retail trade summit in Egypt and North Africa "ERS 2019" was launched, which aims to discuss all the challenges facing the retail sector in Egypt and exchange experiences between the government and private sectors. During 2020, the majority of retail stores had to close their doors and started developing their online platforms and some enhanced their physical locations with more entertainment and food and beverage options. The situation has changed and the majority of consumers rely on e-commerce to buy the products they need. Among the most popular products that consumers buy online are electronics and cosmetics, and vegetables are one of the commodities that their demand rates are increasing more than the others.
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