While the major urban centres in Athens and Thessaloniki accounted for more than 50% of sales volume and turnover, regional areas continued to show the strongest growth, amounting to double digits on the islands.
For example, whereas the market’s overall turnover increased by 9.3% in 2023, the growth rate on Crete and the Ionian islands was 12.9% and 14%, respectively.
More specifically, on the islands of the Ionian and Aegean Seas, which NielsenIQ now includes in the official overall picture of the market, they contributed 8.4% of overall retail food sales throughout the year, while during the summer their contribution increased to as much as 11.2%, specifically between July 17 and August 12.
According to NielsenIQ Senior Customer Success Analyst Dimitris Velissaridis, this could be attributed to two basic factors: the higher tourist traffic, which has increased consumption, and greater price hikes in relation to the mainland and Crete.
The average increase in prices on the Ionian and Aegean islands in 2023 stood at 9.6%, whereas inflation in the rest of the country was 8.7%.
The islands also showed a higher share of sales in specific categories, including alcoholic drinks, sunscreen and bottled water.
