Sales have lost their role: Merchants demand changes

Summer sales events have lost their effectiveness, according to the Athens Trade Association, which is calling for a revision of the legal framework governing promotions. The association's assessment follows a survey of 409 small and medium-sized retail businesses in the Greek capital.

“

The sales were and must remain the last tool for liquidating seasonal inventory for small and medium-sized businesses. Today, however, the institution has been essentially undermined by the institutional framework itself, as offers can be made continuously and chaotically.

The survey revealed a disappointing market performance during this year's summer sales. A significant 71.3% of businesses reported lower turnover compared to the previous year. Furthermore, 98% of respondents expressed a desire for changes to the regulations concerning offers and sales. The findings also indicated that 93.4% of businesses believe the current system of continuous promotions primarily benefits large corporations, multinational companies, and online platforms at the expense of smaller enterprises.

“

The state must stand by small and medium-sized entrepreneurship. We demand dialogue, stable rules, and measures that do not have a fiscal cost but can provide relief to the market.

Thanos Tsaggaris, president of the Athens Trade Association, emphasized that sales should serve as a final tool for businesses to liquidate seasonal inventory. However, he stated that the institution has been undermined by the current regulatory environment, which permits continuous and chaotic promotional activities. Tsaggaris noted that consumers, burdened by high prices and housing costs, have altered their spending priorities and habits. Simultaneously, small and medium-sized businesses face escalating operational costs and intensifying unfair competition from large chains and e-commerce platforms.

“

If there is no immediate substantial intervention, I fear that within the next two to three years, a very large part of small and medium-sized businesses, especially in regional markets, will not be able to survive and will close down.

"The state must stand by small and medium-sized entrepreneurship," Tsaggaris urged. "We demand dialogue, stable rules, and measures that do not have a fiscal cost but can provide relief to the market." He expressed concern that without immediate and substantial intervention, a large portion of small and medium-sized businesses, particularly in regional markets, could face closure within the next two to three years. "We want the state to be an ally, not a bystander. Decisions for the market must be made with the market, not in its absence."

“

We want the state to be an ally and not a bystander. Decisions for the market must be made with the market and not in its absence.