Todorić's Konzum losing market share, competition growing stronger

Konzum was still the largest retail chain in Croatia last year, but its market share decreased from 30 to 40 percent to 20 to 30 percent, according to an analysis by the Agency for the Protection of Competition, reports Patria.

In the retail market, the gap between Konzum and Lidl has narrowed, as Lidl increased its market share to 10 to 20 percent and, together with its "sister" company Kaufland - both chains owned by the Schwarz Group - has for the first time exceeded a total market share of 20 percent.

Last year, the National Retail Chain (NTL) entered the TOP 10 retail chains for the first time and, due to its strong growth, is becoming an increasingly important player in the market.

KTC moved up from 10th to 9th place last year, while Studenac moved from 9th to 8th place.

The grocery market is growing, and the revenue of all retailers included in the survey last year amounted to 33.1 billion kuna, which is a 4.5 percent increase compared to the previous year. For comparison, in 2014, retailer revenues increased by only 0.37 percent.

Regarding market concentration, the top ten retail chains held over eighty percent of the market, while the remaining 40 retailers covered by the survey accounted for the rest.

Of the total revenue generated from retail trade in Croatia last year, 19 percent was generated in the City of Zagreb, 13.1 percent in Split-Dalmatia County, 9.2 percent in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, 6.9 percent in Istria County, 6.3 percent in Zagreb County, 6.1 percent in Zadar County, and 5.2 percent in Osijek-Baranja County.

Thus, almost two-thirds of the total retail revenue in the Republic of Croatia was generated in Zagreb and the aforementioned six counties. The remaining 14 counties accounted for approximately one-third of the total turnover (34.2 percent), writes Index.