The Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT) with this sectoral publication, presents in detail the evolution of the sales/turnover of all classes of activity of the retail trade section. Retail trade is the basic business model of the
modern consumer supply chain, through the resale of material goods or services and the promotion of products for profit.
Therefore, retail trade has always been an important productive tertiary sector of the Greek economy with a significant contribution to the Gross Domestic Product. At the same time, and during the recent circumstances, the monitoring of the evolution of the size of the retail trade activity classes is important, given the direct and indirect effects due to the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.
In addition, monitoring the aggregates of the retail trade, leads to conclusions on the evolution of consumption (in terms of volume, characteristics, preferences and substitution of products) of the Greek society, the citizens and the enterprises of the country.
In particular, ELSTAT announces a) data on a quarterly basis, on turnover for all enterprises classified in the activity classes of the retail trade divisions (45 and 47 of the NACE Rev.2 classification), b) turnover data on a monthly basis for all enterprises obliged to double-entry accounting bookkeeping classified in the activity classes of the retail trade divisions (45 and 47 of the NACE Rev.2 classification).
a. Total of enterprises classified in the activity classes of the retail trade divisions (Table 1) For the total of enterprises in retail trade, the turnover in the third quarter 2021 amounted to 14.6 billion euro, recording an increase of 11.0% in comparison with the third quarter of 2020, when the respective turnover was 13.2 billion euro and an increase of 8.2% in comparison with the second quarter of 2021, when the respective turnover was 13.5 billion euro.
The activities that recorded the biggest increase in turnover in the third quarter of 2021 compared with the corresponding quarter of 2020 are:
• Retail sale of watches and jewelry in specialised stores, increase 57.1%.
• Retail sale of music and video recordings in specialized stores, increase 49.5%.
The activity that recorded a decrease in turnover in the third quarter of 2021 compared with the corresponding quarter of 2020 is:
• Retail sale via stalls and markets of textiles, clothing and footwear, decrease 3.9%.
Presentation of activities with biggest rates of change
The class of economic activity “Retail sale of watches and jewellery in specialised stores” which recorded the biggest increase in turnover in the third quarter of 2021 compared with the corresponding quarter of 2020, includes the retail sale of watches and jewelry in specialised stores.
The class of economic activity “Retail sale via stalls and markets of textiles, clothing and footwear” which recorded a decrease in turnover in the third quarter of 2021 compared with the corresponding quarter of 2020, includes the retail sale via stalls and markets of textiles, clothing and footwear.
The main characteristics of the enterprises of these economic classes, according to the final Statistical Business Register, with reference year 2018, are the following:
b. All enterprises classified in the activity classes of the retail trade divisions obliged to double-entry accounting
bookkeeping (Table 2)
For the enterprises in retail trade divisions obliged to double-entry accounting bookkeeping, for which data are available on a monthly basis, the turnover in September 2021 amounted to 2.9 billion euro, recording an increase of 11.8% in comparison with September 2020, when the respective turnover was 2.6 billion euro and an increase of 5.0% in comparison with August 2021, when the respective turnover was 2.7 billion euro.
The activities that recorded the biggest increase in turnover in September 2021 compared with September 2020 are:
• Retail sale of cosmetic and toilet articles in specialized stores, increase 59.1%.
• Retail sale of watches and jewelry in specialized stores, increase 55.9%.
The activities that recorded a decrease in turnover in September 2021 compared with September 2020 are:
• Retail sale of textiles in specialized stores, decrease 14.6%.
• Retail sale of books in specialized stores, decrease 4.4%.
Presentation of activities with biggest rates of change
The class of economic activity “Retail sale of cosmetic and toilet articles in specialized stores” which recorded the biggest increase in turnover in September 2021 compared with September 2020 includes the retail trade of
perfumery items, cosmetics and toilet articles.
The class of economic activity “Retail sale of textiles in specialized stores” which recorded the biggest decrease in turnover in September 2021 compared with September 2020 includes retail sale of fabrics, of knitting yarn, of basic materials for rug, tapestry or embroidery making, of textiles and of haberdashery, such as needles, sewing thread, etc.
The main characteristics of the enterprises that belong to these economic classes, with turnover data in September 2021 according to the final Statistical Business Register, with reference year 2018, are the following: 
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