Romanian govt. Would have a shock doing that so better not to see
Expect that this is just a economy of scale advantage. They produce so much to cover internal demand and then massive exports that no CEE country can compete in terms of productivity/cost. German companies also mainly control retail so in essence also control supply chains which makes it an entry barrier for local producers to enter the market and begin competing more broadly.
Maybe other factors? Infrastructure in some cases, but doubt it makes a big difference for Poland or Czechia.
Cheaper compared to Estonia as well. My friend who lives in Germany complains how expensive food is in Estonia whenever he visits.
It’s not just food though. Many products seems cheaper over there. You want to build a kitchen in Estonia? Much cheaper to order from Germany. You want to buy a board game? Order from Germany for 40% less. Ordering board games from Finland/Sweden is still cheaper than buying from local stores especially with free shipping from Finland.
[deleted]
I heard about Ukrainian refugees being surprised about the low prices at German supermarkets.
Why are so many European nations so expensive when it comes to food? Also drugstore prices in other nations are ridiculous. Austria, Spain, Croatia – often nearly double the price for exactly the same items like sunscreen, shampoo and so on.
thats interessting because i hear a lot of complains that the prices here are too high
So basically average salary in Czech Republic is half the average salary in Germany and Germany even has cheaper food?
why? 😀
This isn’t a new concept. I’ve found that some things in Germany, such as general shopping and tech items are cheaper than in the Czech Republic. Add the fact that inflation in Czech Republic is currently double than Germany’s and it’s not a surprise.
But eating / drinking out is still far cheaper over here, although the gap is shrinking.
This gives off the same energy as that UK politician saying people with no money can buy cheaper white-label goods. The bubble must be amazing
Thats economy at scale for you
Slovakia is even worse, lower wages than Czechia and food is same price or often even costs more. Also food quality is bad compared to West, but that is same for entire former Eastern bloc.
So basically we earn lot less and pay more for worse quality food than Germany.
I ordered my PC from Germany.. paid much less than I would have in France. Only 20e for transport.
I moved to Germany from Australia. Everything is cheaper here.
You all say all that about the fierce competition in Germany and it bringing down the prices, but Lithuania has like at least 5 different retail chains with relatively similar market shares:
* Maxima – Lithuanian
* NORFA – Lithuanian
* Iki – Lithuanian
* RIMI – (ICA, so Swedish?)
* Lidl
and then also half a dozen of smaller ones. Prices are still outrageous despite the cut-throat competition. The chains claim that its because the market is small and economies of scale don’t work the same way. We know they know we don’t have any other option than to get our groceries from them at whatever price if we want to survive, so there’s no reason for them to bring down the prices; instead they compete at who plays the discount and loyalty card game the best.
German discount supermarkets are insanely competitive and efficient. Also, economies of scale help them.
It has been my experience as well. I used to live in Dresden, which is pretty close to the Czech and Polish border. Initially I went over both borders a couple times to get groceries just out of curiousity, and I saw that the prices were pretty similar but the quality was markedly lower (I specifically remember bread being borderline inedible).
I also saw a difference between Northern and Southern Italy. Northern Italy had about the same prices but a much larger offer. That’s competition for you.
This guy looks like German Harald Schmidt, a former talk show master.
Reminds me about olive oil, how a bottle of 1L here was 9€ and in other countries the same exact bottle was 3€.
This is fun.
The poorer you are the harder they milk you. I was in Spain a few months ago and I paid (on average) less for better quality products than Bulgaria…
Yeah, every time I visit my SO in Hungary I’m appalled by the food prices there. I really don’t know how you guys manage.
And still 6% of the german population is poor, while in CZ only 1% is poor.
He didn’t have to go to Germany for such a ”discovery”. Germany is right next door from us and it’s a ”public secret” that groceries are cheaper in Germany than here.
The Schwarz Gruppe has a monopoly on groceries in Bulgaria. That’s how they got us.
Definitely cheaper than I Belgium as well. I drive to Aachen about once per month for big shopping…
Groceries are stately subsidised in Germany, not a surprise
Germany doing something right that other countries could seek to emulate.
Ožujsko beer is cheaper in Germany than in Croatia.
27 comments
Romanian govt. Would have a shock doing that so better not to see
Expect that this is just a economy of scale advantage. They produce so much to cover internal demand and then massive exports that no CEE country can compete in terms of productivity/cost. German companies also mainly control retail so in essence also control supply chains which makes it an entry barrier for local producers to enter the market and begin competing more broadly.
Maybe other factors? Infrastructure in some cases, but doubt it makes a big difference for Poland or Czechia.
Cheaper compared to Estonia as well. My friend who lives in Germany complains how expensive food is in Estonia whenever he visits.
It’s not just food though. Many products seems cheaper over there. You want to build a kitchen in Estonia? Much cheaper to order from Germany. You want to buy a board game? Order from Germany for 40% less. Ordering board games from Finland/Sweden is still cheaper than buying from local stores especially with free shipping from Finland.
[deleted]
I heard about Ukrainian refugees being surprised about the low prices at German supermarkets.
Why are so many European nations so expensive when it comes to food? Also drugstore prices in other nations are ridiculous. Austria, Spain, Croatia – often nearly double the price for exactly the same items like sunscreen, shampoo and so on.
thats interessting because i hear a lot of complains that the prices here are too high
So basically average salary in Czech Republic is half the average salary in Germany and Germany even has cheaper food?
why? 😀
This isn’t a new concept. I’ve found that some things in Germany, such as general shopping and tech items are cheaper than in the Czech Republic. Add the fact that inflation in Czech Republic is currently double than Germany’s and it’s not a surprise.
But eating / drinking out is still far cheaper over here, although the gap is shrinking.
This gives off the same energy as that UK politician saying people with no money can buy cheaper white-label goods. The bubble must be amazing
Thats economy at scale for you
Slovakia is even worse, lower wages than Czechia and food is same price or often even costs more. Also food quality is bad compared to West, but that is same for entire former Eastern bloc.
So basically we earn lot less and pay more for worse quality food than Germany.
I ordered my PC from Germany.. paid much less than I would have in France. Only 20e for transport.
I moved to Germany from Australia. Everything is cheaper here.
You all say all that about the fierce competition in Germany and it bringing down the prices, but Lithuania has like at least 5 different retail chains with relatively similar market shares:
* Maxima – Lithuanian
* NORFA – Lithuanian
* Iki – Lithuanian
* RIMI – (ICA, so Swedish?)
* Lidl
and then also half a dozen of smaller ones. Prices are still outrageous despite the cut-throat competition. The chains claim that its because the market is small and economies of scale don’t work the same way. We know they know we don’t have any other option than to get our groceries from them at whatever price if we want to survive, so there’s no reason for them to bring down the prices; instead they compete at who plays the discount and loyalty card game the best.
German discount supermarkets are insanely competitive and efficient. Also, economies of scale help them.
One reason why Aldi is also heavily and successfully [expanding into the USA at the moment.](https://www.forbes.com/sites/markfaithfull/2023/05/02/aldi-growth-accelerates-as-german-discounter-opens-across-the-us/) Murricans finding out that you don’t need stadium-sized megamalls and you can save money on store brand food that’s still good.
It has been my experience as well. I used to live in Dresden, which is pretty close to the Czech and Polish border. Initially I went over both borders a couple times to get groceries just out of curiousity, and I saw that the prices were pretty similar but the quality was markedly lower (I specifically remember bread being borderline inedible).
I also saw a difference between Northern and Southern Italy. Northern Italy had about the same prices but a much larger offer. That’s competition for you.
This guy looks like German Harald Schmidt, a former talk show master.
Reminds me about olive oil, how a bottle of 1L here was 9€ and in other countries the same exact bottle was 3€.
This is fun.
The poorer you are the harder they milk you. I was in Spain a few months ago and I paid (on average) less for better quality products than Bulgaria…
Yeah, every time I visit my SO in Hungary I’m appalled by the food prices there. I really don’t know how you guys manage.
And still 6% of the german population is poor, while in CZ only 1% is poor.
He didn’t have to go to Germany for such a ”discovery”. Germany is right next door from us and it’s a ”public secret” that groceries are cheaper in Germany than here.
The Schwarz Gruppe has a monopoly on groceries in Bulgaria. That’s how they got us.
Definitely cheaper than I Belgium as well. I drive to Aachen about once per month for big shopping…
Groceries are stately subsidised in Germany, not a surprise
Germany doing something right that other countries could seek to emulate.
Ožujsko beer is cheaper in Germany than in Croatia.
Croatian beer.
Cheaper in Germany.