Crisis drives Greek population towards web shops

Expensive purchases

It is very difficult for the average Greek citizen to get cash money nowadays, a huge setback for a country that is not used to using card payments. As it is still possible to use a card for payments, an increasing number of Greek consumers have resorted to online payments.

In the weekend before the banks shut down, the price comparison website Skroutz.gr experienced incredibly load. The website currently compares 1,600 Greek web shops. “People have focused more on luxury items like iPhones, iPads, Samsung Galaxys and so forth”, co-founder Vasilis Dimos told NRC. “People feel they should buy something now, while they still can and while their money is still worth something.”

There are other tales as well, like what Yiannis Zafeiropoulos explained. He owns three online shops and 2 physical shops and has seen turnover drop nearly 90 % over the past week. Only expensive electronics and the basic necessities still generate some turnover.

According to the Greek organization for entrepreneurs, ESEE, the average turnover drop was 70 % over the past week, with only food going up (+ 30 %). Particularly food with a lengthy expiration date was in high demand. It is remarkable to see that the Greek population has used its card for payments in supermarkets, something that only happened on occasion in the past.