Warning: The Corona crisis may speed up shop deaths

As more people shop online, many physical stores have been forced to close down. The crisis with corona has further aggravated the situation of the stores.

- We saw an increased number of bankruptcies in early April. Normally, smaller companies have been responsible for the bankruptcy statistics, but now we could also see that some larger companies went bankrupt, says Karin Johansson, CEO of Swedish Trade.

Changed opening hours and reduced labor costs, thanks to short-term permits, have made it easier for some stores. But if consumers do not return, it will have consequences. How many stores survive will depend on consumers, says Karin Johansson.

- What exactly will happen in the future is a little early to answer. All indications are that GDP growth is stagnating and unemployment is rising. Continuing that will also keep people in the wallet. It strikes directly against the trade, she says.

Even before the corona crisis, the industry was affected by the shift from physical to digital commerce. The stores have received a smaller customer base.

- If we make more and more of our purchases online, the city needs to offer a different type of attractiveness. Many of the retail premises are now replaced by cafes and restaurants. Trade is the big draw in to the city centers, but now it is other players who can go in and do it in a different way, says Karin Johansson.

To survive long-term as a physical store, a clear niche is required.

- One example of such a niche, where even the physical stores are going strong, is the low-price trade. The same goes for the luxury segment, says Karin Johansson.

The effect of the corona crisis on retail trade has not been even in the country or between the various industries.

The metropolitan regions, especially Stockholm's inner city, have been particularly hard hit.

The clothing and shoe industry has had a very tough time. At the same time, it has been good for the grocery stores when people have bunkered goods, the exception being in the border areas, for example in Strömstad at the border with Norway, which has lost the foreign visitors who usually shop there.