The matter in summary: Maximat at Nordby in Strömstad set a turnover record of over one billion kroner in 2023, thanks in large part to Norwegian customers. Food prices in Norway increased by 20 per cent in 2023, the highest annual increase since 1982. The price increase for food and non-alcoholic beverages in Sweden increased by an average of 17.2 per cent from January to October 2023. Norwegians traded cross-border for NOK 6.8 billion from January to September 2023, of which 2.9 billion was spent on food and groceries. The store manager at Maximat believes the price difference between Norway and Sweden will continue due to higher operating costs in Norway. Kiwi Svinesundveien on the Norwegian side of the border has also had a growth of 38 per cent from autumn 2022 to autumn 2023, and believes they attract customers with low prices and good service. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAi. The content is quality assured by news’s journalists before publication. – It is hopeless to go to the store in Norway. We get one more carrier bag in Sweden than at home, says Svein Reiding. On Wednesday he made the trip to Maximat at Nordby in Strömstad. Just before the turn of the year, the store set a record with over one billion kroner in turnover in 2023. Reiding is one of several Norwegians who have contributed to the grocery store reaching the milestone. He has been a loyal cross-border trader for several years. – At home I go to the discount stores, but we have shopped for food in Sweden for a long time and there are just as good products here as at home, he says. In 2023, food prices in Norway will increase by 20 per cent. It is the highest annual increase since 1982. Increased prices do not stop Norwegians The increase in food prices in Sweden has varied throughout last year. At the turn of the year last year, prices rose sharply in Sweden. According to the Swedish statistics agency SCB, the prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages increased by an average of 17.2 percent from January to October in 2023, compared to the same period the previous year. From July to November, the increase is somewhat lower, and was on average 8 per cent. Increased prices have not prevented Norwegians from taking the trip across the border. Ole Jørgen Lind, store manager at Maximat Nordby, is delighted with the record the store set in 2023. Now he is betting on several good years for cross-border trade. Photo: Rune Fredriksen / news – We have the pandemic behind us, so the fact that we are up so well already in the first full year of operation I think is very strong, says Ole Jørgen Lind. store manager at Maximat Nordby. But have also noticed the price increase. He believes that a lot has happened in recent years that has affected the store. – In Norway, it has been a special year in grocery retailing. But we have the advantage that we have the supermarket range and extremely much lower prices than the Norwegian mini-price stores. That is why we think Norwegians come to us. Believe that the price difference will continue From January to September 2023, Norwegians traded cross-border for NOK 6.8 billion, according to Statistics Norway. 2.9 billion was used for food and groceries. It was traded for an average of NOK 1,892 per trip. Swede Lasse Beckman lives in Norway, but is price-conscious and believes his home country has better food options, despite sharp price increases. Photo: Rune Fredriksen / news Several people had made the trip across the border on Wednesday to do the bulk trade. Among other things, Swedish Lasse Beckman. He lives in Norway, but usually always shops in his home country. – I don’t know what they are doing in Norway. They increase from month to month. Shops advertise and say they are the cheapest, but I don’t believe any of that, he says. The Nordby Supermarked grocery store is also located at the center in Strömstad. They too have had a great year. Together with MaxiMat and Ica Maxi in Haninge, the trio make up Sweden’s largest stores in terms of turnover. After two years of the pandemic, cross-border trade has picked up. The store manager at Maximat believes the number will increase. Photo: Amalie Fagerhaug Evjen / news – The premise is that things cost more in Norway, wages and framework conditions make it more expensive to operate in Norway. Sweden is in the EU, so we are lucky in terms of purchase prices, which are significantly lower in Sweden than what they get in Norway, so I think the price difference will remain, says Lind, the store manager at Maximat. Norwegians turn to low-cost chains A stone’s throw from the Swedish border on the Norwegian side is Kiwi Svinesundveien. They have not noticed that Norwegians are disappearing across the border, quite the opposite. The store has had a growth of 38 per cent from autumn 2022 to autumn 2023. In addition, the store had a sales record in weeks 50 and 51 last year. – So we really only have a lot of customers and are satisfied with good growth. There are many people who come here who have shopped elsewhere before, but find it too expensive. It’s about price, it’s also about having goods and pleasant service, says store manager Malin Therese Berger.
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Norwegians’ cross-border trade in Sweden increases despite price growth – news Østfold – Local news, TV and radio
