The change in consumer habits resulting from the boom in e-commerce and the preference for avoiding visits to physical stores, has forced some large commercial surfaces to be transformed into storage and logistics areas.
The covid-19 outbreak caused the emergence of a new commercial reality, in which consumers are less willing to go to physical stores to make certain purchases and prefer to store online.
In Costa Rica the chain Almacenes El Rey will open in the next months four new points of sale in San Carlos, Perez Zeledon, Liberia and Santa Cruz.
The stores that will soon open to the public will have a different format than those already operating in other areas of the country. The concept of the new establishments will be winery type with a smaller size, when compared to the points of sale located in the Great Metropolitan Area.
The Novex chain of hardware stores opened its first branch in the country, which has an area of 3,000 square meters and is located in Curridabat, east of San José.
The new store that belongs to it is specifically located 250 meters east of the bomb La Galera, on the old road to Tres Rios, and has 20 departments that include construction materials, household items, pets, gardening, vehicles, painting, among others.
In Central America, more than 800,000 people are looking to buy items to decorate a house or apartment online, and of this group of consumers, approximately 12% explore options to purchase lamps and their accessories.
The interactive information system of CentralAmericaData, monitors in real time the changes in consumer habits in all markets of the region, with fundamental information to understand the current commercial environment in which companies of all industries must operate.
It is estimated that in Costa Rica at least 40% of the premises located in shopping malls have been forced to close permanently due to the restrictions imposed by the covid-19 outbreak.
The Almacenes Siman store located in Plaza Gran Vía, in Ciudad Merliot, is a sales point that, at a distance of 15 minutes walking, captures a potential market of over 15 thousand consumers, and 87% of them are interested in footwear.
Using the Geomarketing solutions that we have developed for our clients, CentralAmericaData's Trade Intelligence team analyzed the environment of some of the main department stores in Central America. Below is an excerpt of the study's findings.
After investing $17 million, Walmart opened a new store to the public on July 10, in the canton of San Pablo, province of Heredia.
This new location becomes the 14th store that the chain will operate under the Walmart format and for the operation of this supermarket, the company will hire 123 people, said the official statement.
Given the gradual return to physical stores, customers will appreciate it if businesses disinfect stores several times a day, if other visitors are required to clean their hands before entering, and if employees use protective equipment at all times.
Although in this context of the spread of covid-19, digital channels have gained ground in Central American markets and this trend is expected to continue in the coming months and years, there are commercial establishments that will have to adjust their face-to-face sales strategy to the demands of the new normality, since there will always be customers who prefer to continue shopping in person.
Considerable investments in the digitalization of operations, the closure of small stores and the expansion of the commercial area of the best located sales points, is part of the strategy that companies are beginning to implement in the new context of business transformation.
Managers of large corporations agree that several companies were already making progress in digitizing sales and operations, but the pandemic ended up persuading decision makers of the need to focus on online sales, and simultaneously accompany it with a plan to transform physical stores.
In April, the Walmart chain invested nearly $8.5 million in the construction and opening of four new stores in Costa Rica.
The company reported that three sales points operate under the Pali format and are located in Ipis de Goicoechea, Guayabo de Bagaces and Dulce Nombre de Cartago. The other establishment operates under the brand Maxi Pali and is located in Los Guido, Desamparados.
Between February 2020 and Easter Week, visits to shops decreased between 40% and 90% in Central American countries, but since April 13 a change in the trend has been observed, reflecting a greater movement of people to shops and other businesses.
According to the "Information System for the Impact Analysis of Covid-19 on Business", prepared by the Trade Intelligence Unit of CentralAmericaData, Costa Rica is the country with the most pronounced change in trend, since as of April 12th the reported drop in physical visits to stores was 79%, while on April 17th the reported reduction was 57% from the levels prior to the health crisis.
In Guatemala the population with the highest average income shows interest in items to renovate spaces in the home and garden products.
An analysis of consumer interests and preferences in Guatemala, prepared by the Trade Intelligence Unit of CentralAmericaData, provides interesting results on the characteristics and people who show interest in household items.
Since the end of 2019, a new online store began operating in the country, offering nearly 50 thousand imported products and more than 600 brands.
Founders of the new store called "Guatique.com" reported that it is catalogued as a department store and offers fashion, beauty, toys, leisure and technology products.
The chain of department stores that had a branch in the Panamanian market, announced that since January 12 it stopped operating in the country.
The company made the announcement official on the morning of January 11, but in its publication broadcast on social networks, no further details were given of the reasons that motivated the chain to withdraw from Panama.
In Costa Rica on November 9, the chain of stores El Rey plans to open a new store to the public that has an area of 2,700 square meters and is located in Guapiles.
Company executives informed that the new store has a new design and format of confectionery, which consists of providing a greater variety of products and more self-service options.
Recognized Brazilian company of backhoe loaders, telescopic, articulated and other types of cranes looking for companies interested in representing the brand and distributing their machinery in Central America and Mexico. The company manufactures and sells telescopic,...
Operating Company dedicated to the manufacture of gluten-free and sugar-free products, OHNE brand. The OHNE brand has 8 product lines: square bread, sweet...
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