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• Impact of the Financial and Economic Crisis of 2009 on the Hungarian Food Retail Sector in the Light of Consumer Confidence – Improving Trends, Increasing Consumer Confidence

  47-59

  Erzsébet Kristóf

  Mónika Harangi-Rákos

  Views:

  59

  As a result of the international financial and economic crisis of 2009, Hungarian customers started to make informed purchasing decisions. Merchants recognizing this phenomenon formed their strategies accordingly, while trying to meet the requirements of the constantly changing government regulations. This strategy ensured primarily that they could maintain their position in trading, new consumer expansion was, however, limited. Limited because consumers have realized the situation, i.e. traders have been competing for their income and complex shop visiting has become widely common, implying the weekly tour of different shops in retail chains with an eye on the current promotions. Based on the data of the last eight years, the year most affected by the economic crisis was 2009 – which proved to be the deepest point. It has to be highlighted however that though signs of recovery are clearly visible, the volume of food retail returned to its growth path only in 2014, while sale increase in value has been continuous since 2008. This suggests that the impulses of the crisis starting in the fourth quarter of 2008 formed the domestic food trade for full six years. Also, this period was required to regenerate consumer trust. The more favourable prospects of the finances of both individuals and the economy encourage an increase of willingness to buy. The six-year period impacted by the crisis intensified concentration among trade stakeholders. The forecasts proved realistic, supermarkets have become more popular sites for shopping, although hypermarkets as strong competitors have been able to keep pace due to tailored promotions in the 6 trading days permitted by law until April 2016. Due to the massive social and political pressure the Government repealed the Act prohibiting work on Sundays in most retail shops with effect from 16 April 2016.

  JEL code: M30 General

• Changes in Food Purchasing Habits During the Covid Pandemic in Slovakia and Hungary, Focus on Southern Slovakia and Western Hungary

  55-70

  Anna Molnár

  László Józsa

  Adrienn Dernóczi-Polyák

  Views:

  860

  The global pandemic of COVID-19 has led to many drastic changes worldwide, not only in the economy, but amongst others, in the structure of people’s daily routines as well. Some developments have been involuntary – as social distancing, wearing masks, restrictions on travel, etc., but for others, it has merely accelerated the adoption of behaviors already gaining traction, such as the digitalization of shopping and more. Consequences of subsequent lockdowns and their effect on the consumers’ grocery purchasing habits and their implications for food retail had been investigated in our research with a particular focus on regions of South Slovakia and West Hungary in a period ranging from November 2020 till April 2021. The constructed online questionnaire chosen for data collection aimed to identify specific ways in which consumers changed their grocery shopping behavior during the lockdown (e.g., frequency of shopping trips, time spent in stores, the aim of shopping, purchase of ingredients, online shopping). The results of the online questionnaire underlined the main regional differences between the two countries. The overall outcome of our research showed the moderate reduction in grocery shopping frequency, minor changes in shopping location and partially increase in online shopping. Our results showed that although the proportion of online purchases has increased, such a crisis does not seem to be sufficient to overcome barriers to shopping, such as the purchase of a new, unknown product. But changes that provide positive experiences are likely to last longer, particularly those driven by convenience and well-being, such as digital adoption, value-based purchasing, and increased health awareness. This provides an opportunity for companies to offer innovative, value-based, and integrated products or services to meet customer needs. Companies and retailers will need to adapt fast, understand consumers’ preferences, and stay relevant.

  JEL Codes: D12, D91

• The Actual Questions of the product and the Consumption of Soltvadkert' Wine

  125-131

  Edina Lendvai

  Adrienn Nagy

  Views:

  22

  In our work looking for the answer for the next questions: What is the current situation for winemakers nowadays in Soltvadkert. What is the reputation of their wine? What do local habitants think about the wine of their city? What is the opinion about it the tourists? Do the people remember to the counterfeit wine? To know the answers we make qualitative and quantitative survey. We made 5 interviews with viticulturist on Soltvadkert. We asked them about the market-opportunities, the effects of economic crisis, the impact of import wines, the connection between the local winemakers, the trends of Hungarian wine-consumption. The questions for the consumers are the follow: The consumption habits linked to the wine, the knowledge about the winemakers of Soltvadkert, the wine-purchasing habit. We asked 100 local residents and 100 tourists. The result of this survey is the SWOT analysis, which we made and show in this article.