With the first wave of stores now opening up, a semblance of normalcy is returning to consumer behavior in grocery stores and hypermarkets. Panic buying is a thing of the past, according to Tomáš Prouza, president of the Association for Retail and Tourism. However, uncertainty about the future is causing them to choose cheaper options and even whether they should make purchases in physical stores. By increasing their delivery capacity and raising their inventory levels, online supermarkets have increased their volume of business from nervous customers. Despite optimism about the current downwards trend of the coronavirus epidemic and the gradual restart planned for the economy, many business leaders are warning that restaurants and stores may not be able to survive until June without opening. The local chairman of the International Council of Shopping Centers Jan Kubíček said that the government’s timetable could prove to be fatal for one-third of all shops located in malls.
