Online retailers who have been accustomed to success in recent years, such as the Otto Group, are also feeling the effects of the crisis.
"In Germany, our sales fell by 13.5 percent in the first half of the financial year from March to August"said CEO Alexander Birken "Handelsblatt".
Consumers pay attention to every cent. A trend reversal is not foreseeable. Abroad – for example in the USA – business is going well. There is a growth of more than 8 percent. Sales across the entire group fell by 5.6 percent in the first half of the financial year.
At the same time, the Otto Group had to cope with rising costs in practically all areas. In view of the high inflation, however, this can only be passed on to customers to a small extent. Therefore, the profit margin decreases. "We already know today that we won’t be able to match last year’s top result"said Birken.(dpa)