The Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK) has started to get itchy feet in the face of the stringent anti-epidemic measures put into place by the Croatian Government and the National Civil Protection Headquarters. The opening hours for shops are giving them the biggest headache.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 22nd of April, 2020, Croatian wholesale trade has dropped significantly, more precisely from 8.1 percent (from 9.6 billion kuna down to 8.9 billion kuna) in the previous month compared to March last year, while the situation in the retail trade was slightly better as the amount of fiscal receipts issued decreased by just 2.9 per cent, from 7.3 billion kuna down to 7.1 billion kuna.

The Croatian Chamber of Commerce has asked the National Civil Protection Headquarters to lift the current coronavirus restrictions on the operation of all Croatian shops.

"The current favourable epidemiological picture makes it possible for us to be able to open all stores, of course, with the strict implementation of the necessary epidemiological measures. These days, more and more people are returning to work, and most aren't managing to arrive at stores until 17:00, which puts unnecessary pressure on both the stores and on the health of the crowds of people waiting. Re-introducing normal working hours would optimise this and benefit the whole economy,'' said the Croatian Chamber of Commerce's Vice President for Trade and Finance, Josip Zaher, adding that security measures should be determined by the number of visitors relative to the square footage of the shop's premises.

"This will enable the opening of almost all stores without any discrimination, and special attention should be paid to the opening of large shopping centres due to the large fluctuation of customers," Zaher explained, noting that trade is an extremely important activity for the Croatian economy and that we should enable the normalisation of the conditions for it as soon as possible, in order to try to stem the decline in Croatia's economic activity.

Make sure to follow our dedicated section for all you need to know about coronavirus in Croatia. Follow our business page for more on the Croatian economy.

As Vedran Marjanovic/Novac writes on the 22nd of April, 2020, shortfalls in the budgets of various Croatian counties, cities, municipalities and state funds created through the measures put in place to assist the economy and residents affected by coronavirus will have interest-free loans from the state made available to them, according to a statement issued by Finance Minister Zdravko Maric recently.

''This instruction applies to all local and regional self-government units, the Croatian Health Insurance Institute and the Croatian Pension Insurance Institute, which have experienced falls in revenue due to deferred payments, reimbursement or exemption from income tax and surtax, in accordance with the special regulation governing the general tax procedure,'' reads Minister Maric's statement.

The Ministry of Finance has published the proper forms for applying for these aforementioned interest-free loans on its website.

According to an announcement from the Association of Cities, the aforementioned assistance offered by the Croatian Government doesn't regard loans from commercial banks, but rather temporary assistance for liquidity from the Croatian state budget itself. According to that same association, the amount of credit or assistance offered will be determined by the Ministry of Finance itself according to the amount of deferred, rescheduled and written-off tax liabilities for 2019.

Minister Maric's instructions provided for the payment of these interest-free loans to various beneficiaries in two monthly installments. The first payments of interest-free loans are expected by the end of April 2020.

It's worth recalling that the possibility of paying interest-free loans to Croatian counties, cities and municipalities, as well as state funds, was introduced by the state into the Law on Execution of the State Budget for 2020 in two amendments to that particular law, implemented by the Government and Parliament since Croatia introduced extraordinary measures to protect against the spread of coronavirus.

Make sure to follow our dedicated section for more on coronavirus in Croatia. Follow our business page for more stories like this one.

As Index writes on the 22nd of April, 2020, Education Minister Blazenka Divjak has stated that part of online schooling and education at a distance for children in Croatia is going relatively well. As far as the state graduation is concerned, in discussions with epidemiologists, indicative dates have been proposed for June - and the graduation exam will take place from the 8th to the 29th of June, 2020.

"That's the case in all of the surrounding countries - Slovenia, Austria... Moving state graduation to August wouldn't bring much benefit to anyone, it would just be delaying it. This is how we have backup scenarios. We also want to maximise the time students spend writing their state graduation exam,'' said Blazenka Divjak in conversation with N1.

The minister added that she will announce the current plans for children to return to normal schooling tomorrow.

"Nobody will be forcing children to go back to school, parents will have to decide on that. Classes will be taken online for the vast majority of students, as has been being done so far," Divjak explained.

"Other European countries are embarking on this. Tomorrow, we'll announce the timetable for when we'll go with each scenario. If you want to give the economy a chance to start up, you must allow parents to be able to safely care for their children - either at home or for the schools to take on that role,'' she added.

Blazenka Divjak also stated that classes will not be able to be held as they've previously been, given, among other things, the real need for physical distance.

"We need to work out a detailed scenario, we need to talk to epidemiologists. The vast majority of students will be receiving their education at a distance until the end of this school year,'' she added.

Follow our dedicated section for more on coronavirus in Croatia.

Experts from the Croatian Institute of Public Health have created a working version of the strategy for the adaptation of coronavirus measures and divided it into three phases, Croatia is now slowly entering another phase.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 22nd of April, 2020, the Dnevnik Nova TV team learned the details of the strategy currently being proposed by epidemiologists.

In the first phase, which is now behind us, new cases were discovered, the number of tests was increasing, and protective equipment was being procured. Strict measures were also enacted: shops had their working hours cut short, some were closed, public transport was abolished, schools, kindergartens, colleges, and public events were all cancelled.

In order to get to the second phase, it will take a few days and Croatia will need to see a drop in new coronavirus cases. It is also important that hospitals don't become overcrowded so that they're ready and able to provide care to anyone in need of hospitalisation, and so that a large number of coronavirus tests can also be performed. More than 1500 blood samples have been being tested over recent days.

At this stage, children should gradually return to schools and kindergartens. That is where the physical distance should be ensured, the classrooms should be disinfected regularly, hands should continue being washed, and special attention should be paid to teachers and students who belong to at-risk groups or live with someone within that group. Those people would not initially attend classes.

At the beginning of this second phase, the ability to travel longer distances may be established, but keeping physical distance from other people must also be observed. This means, for example, that there may be a limited number of passengers on a bus at any one time.

Shops would open again, but certainly not all at once. Thus, their working hours would also be gradually extended, first to small shops. We will need to continue to wait in line to make purchases because the need to only allow a certain number of people inside stores will still be in place at this stage. Disinfectants upon entering stores will also still be available.

Of the other service activities, those that don't require physical contact will be among the very first to re-open their doors, provided they can provide physical distance between users of the service.

Weddings and funerals will be able to take place. First they will be limited to 10 and then to 30 people. This number would gradually increase, but with the condition of keeping physical distance implied.

The police are still warning citizens who are outside in a group of more than five people to separate and leave, but this rule would then increase to 10 and subsequently to more people, provided that the number of people testing positive for coronavirus doesn't start to increase rapidly again.

Children's sports grounds and playgrounds would open when the schools are opened, but with rules on the maximum number of people who can recreate at the same time.

The third phase will see Croatia return to normal. Then, restrictions on social gatherings would be lifted, but distancing will remain a rule. Service activities involving physical contact will have further prescribed rules, and they will need to keep records of the parties they come into contact with so that they can be contacted if a coronavirus infection occurs.

In this third phase, we will gradually be able cross borders without any anti-epidemic restrictions, but it is possible that persons arriving to Croatia from countries where, for example, there are a larger number of coronavirus infected persons, will still have their entry restricted.

Unless you have to, it seems like travel won't return to normal for a while, as experts continue to recommend that you avoid travel that isn't necessary until the very end of the coronavirus epidemic. In this third phase, the faculties, ie higher education institutions, would open their doors completely, once it was proven that the opening of schools and kindergartens didn't worsen the epidemiological situation.

The exact dates all this will happen, however, depend on what the epidemiological picture in Croatia will look like. This is a working version written by experts and will certainly have to be adjusted accordingly and as needed, writes Dnevnik.

Make sure to follow our dedicated section for all you need to know about coronavirus in Croatia.

ZAGREB, April 21, 2020- A plane with 58 tonnes of medical equipment arrived on Tuesday in Zagreb from Shanghai, as part of a programme to procure protective equipment from China for Croatia's healthcare system during the COVID-19 epidemic.

The largest part of the latest shipment is equipment procured from the Chinese state companies MEHECO and Sinopharm, the Croatian government said in a press release.

The shipment also included a donation from the Split-based Deltron company and its Chinese partner – Gree Electric Appliances Inc. – for the hospital in Split and local health authorities in Split-Dalmatia County.

Some more shipments of medical equipment will arrive in Zagreb in the coming days owing to coordinated activities by the Office of the Croatian Prime Minister and the ministries of economy and health.

On 12 April, a direct flight from Shanghai brought to Zagreb around 60 tonnes of protective equipment for the Croatian health system and other services fighting the coronavirus epidemic, and that was the first shipment of this kind since the outbreak of COVID-19.

More coronavirus news can be found in the Lifestyle section.

As Matea Grbac/Novac writes on the 21st of April, 2020, the fact that Croatia has a ''big heart'' has once again been proven in the ongoing coronavirus crisis. In order to support the work of medical staff, firefighters, volunteers and all those who found themselves on the front lines due to the coronavirus pandemic and earthquake in Zagreb, some of the largest Croatian companies have decided to donate huge sums.

Podravka, Zagrebacka Banka, INA, HEP, Hrvatski Telekom, Fortenova Group, and A1 Croatia are just some of the Croatian companies that have decided to help the City of Zagreb and the Croatian healthcare system with generous donations. Thus, in their struggle for the betterment and quicker recovery of Croatia, the Croatian companies singled out here donated as much as 60,863,500 kuna.

United Group - donated 3 million US dollars (about 20.9 million kuna)

The United Group operates in seven countries in the region, in the spirit of solidarity in the fight against the ongoing pandemic, it has sent medical equipment and cash worth a total of 3 million dollars. Thus, the Croatian health system has been awarded equipment worth 500,000 dollars (about 3.4 million kuna), which includes 5,600 sets of COVID-19 virus tests, seven respirators, 150,000 masks, 280 thermometers and 4,000 safety glasses.

HEP - donated 5.2 million kuna

Along with the United Group, the largest amount was donated to charity by HEP employees in collaboration with the company's management. By giving up 500 kuna from their own wages, or the collecting of a total of 100,000 in the case of members of the management board, they jointly raised a massive 5.2 million kuna. The donation was donated to help fight coronavirus and repair the damage caused by the Zagreb earthquake.

Adris Group - donated 5 million kuna

The Adris Group decided to provide financial assistance to those most in need through two rounds of donations. In addition to the initial 3 million kuna donated by the Adris Foundation to procure respirators for hospitals in Rijeka and Pula, the Adris administration decided to donate an additional 2 million kuna for the restoration of cultural monuments damaged in the earthquake that hit the Croatian capital recently.

Privredna banka Zagreb - donated 4.9 million kuna

After an initial donation of 1 million kuna to the "Dr. Fran Mihaljević" Clinic for Infectious Diseases in Zagreb, the PBZ Group decided to donate an additional 3.5 million kuna to the general hospitals in Zagreb. With this act, they included as many as seven hospitals, and to each of them they allocated 500,000 kuna. In addition, they donated 400,000 kuna to the Pula General Hospital.

Fortenova Group (former Agrokor) - donated 4 million kuna

Compared to the Croatian companies listed above, the Fortenova Group decided on a slightly different approach. Financial assistance of a total of 4 million kuna was sent to all countries in the region in which they operate. In addition, they donated half a million disposable protective masks to the Civil Protection Directorate worth nearly two million kuna in total.

Hrvatski Telekom (Croatian Telecom) - donated 4 million kuna

They donated a total of 4 million kuna to the ''Dr. Fran Mihaljevic'' Clinic for Infectious Diseases, which redistributed the proceeds according to its own needs, all with the aim of helping to fight the coronavirus pandemic.

OTP banka - donated 2.9 million kuna

In two rounds, OTP banka donated a total of 2.9 million kuna to fight COVID-19, but also to repair parts of Zagreb after the earthquake. In the first round, the bank donated 1.4 million kuna to hospitals across the country, giving general hospitals in Zadar, Sibenik, Split, Dubrovnik, Osijek, Sisak and Pula 200,000 kuna each. Then, immediately after the earthquake, OTP banka sent additional funds in the amount of 1.5 million kuna to Zagreb hospitals to repair earthquake damage.

JANAF - donated 2 million kuna

Through a number of individual donations to hospitals across the country, as well as by paying into the accounts of the Together for Zagreb and Croatia against Coronavirus actions, JANAF donated a total of 2 million kuna. Workers have also shown solidarity during these difficult times, by donating their Eastet bonuses, in the amount of more than 250,000 kuna.

INA - donated 1.5 million kuna

INA, which donated 1.5 million kuna to health institutions, associations and institutions throughout Croatia, showed its solidarity in these difficult conditions. The company donated 250,000 kuna to the ''Dr Fran Mihaljevic'' Clinic for Infectious Diseases and a further 250,000 kuna to the Health Centre of Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, while to the General Hospital Dr Ivo Pedišić in Sisak and to the Croatian Red Cross, INA donated 100,000 kuna each.

The Special Hospital for Chronic Pediatric Diseases in Gornja Bistra and the Croatian Institute for Emergency Medicine were donated 50,000 kuna each. In addition, the Rebro Pediatric Oncology Foundation was donated 200,000 kuna for equipment for pediatric hematology and oncology, and 100,000 kuna was donated to the Pediatric Department at the Pula General Hospital. Additionally, INA donated 50,000 kuna to the Kamensko Association, which sews cotton masks, while the Rudjer Boskovic Technical School in Vinkovci was donated 10,000 kuna to make visors on 3D printers. To help repair the damage caused by the Zagreb earthquake, INA also donated 250,000 kuna to the Together for Zagreb campaign, and another 100,000 kuna was donated to the Zagreb Children's Diseases Clinic.

Nexe Group - donated 1.5 million kuna

A regional manufacturer of building materials, the Nexe Group has donated 1.5 million kuna for the purchase of medical equipment to several hospitals across the region. For the most part, these are respirators and ultrasound devices. In regard to Croatia, they directed their funds to the General County Hospital in Nasice, KBC Osijek and the Croatian Red Cross, while, like INA, they also sent funds for the design of protective visors to the Rudjer Boskovic Technical School in Vinkovci.

A1 Croatia - donated 1.5 million kuna

One of the leading telecom companies in Croatia, A1 Croatia, donated equipment worth 1.5 million kuna to the Dubrava Clinical Hospital. This is the equipment needed to quickly install and connect the patients with the most serious symptos to oxygen therapy.

IKEA - donated 1.5 million kuna

The famed Swedish furniture manufacturer operating in Croatia also has donated 1.5 million kuna to the Croatian health care system. In addition, in partnership with the Croatian Red Cross and various government institutions, IKEA donated mattresses, textiles, food and other essential products to both patients and medical professionals.

Zagrebacka banka - donated 1.3 million kuna

Zagrebacka banka donated 1.3 million kuna to Croatian hospitals to help cover medical expenses, purchase medical equipment and repair earthquake damage.

Erste Bank - donated 1.3 million kuna

The ''Dr. Fran Mihaljevic'' Clinic for Infectious Diseases was sent 1 million kuna by Erste Bank to assist with the procurement of the necessary medical equipment. Erste Card Club also joined in with the donation to the health care system, which paid 300,000 kuna into the account of the Zagreb Children's Disease Clinic to help repair the material damage caused by the earthquake.

Kaufland and Lidl - donated one million kuna

Unlike the Croatian companies listed so far, the Kaufland and Lidl retail chains decided to join forces and donated a total of 1 million kuna to Croatian hospitals. The financial aid of 250,000 kuna went to KB Dubrava and the ''Dr Fran Mihaljevic'' Clinic for Infectious Diseases, while 100,000 kuna was paid to KBC Split, KBC Osijek, KBC Rijeka, OB Varazdin and OB Pula.

Podravka - donated 900,000 kuna

In order to help those who currently need the most help, the group's management and vice-presidents waived part of their income and donated it for humanitarian purposes. The campaign raised 900,000 kuna and directed those funds to hospitals to procure much-needed respirators and other essential medical equipment.

RBA - donated 525,000 kuna

Raiffeisen Bank donated 525,000 kuna to the PALČIĆI Parents Club for the purchase of medical devices necessary for the development and life of premature infants.

Franck - donated 300,000 kuna

To help institutions that cater to those most in need, Franck provided coffee, tea and self-service appliances worth 300,000 kuna. The company, in collaboration with the Croatian Red Cross, referred its products to healthcare professionals, emergency services, and volunteers across the country.

Dukat - donated 225,000 kuna

Dukat donated 30,000 litres of milk worth 225,000 kuna to citizens most at risk of a coronavirus epidemic and to those who have suffered material damage caused by the Zagreb earthquake, and the products will be distributed to citizens over three consecutive months.

Addiko Bank - donated 200,000 kuna

Addiko Bank has sent 200,000 kuna to KBC Osijek and KB Dubrava for the purchase of essential medical devices and protective equipment through the campaign 'Croatia against Coronavirus'.

Plinacro - donated 113,500 kuna

Plinacro paid a total of 113,500 kuna to the Together for Zagreb and Croatia against Coronavirus campaigns.

Pevex (formerly Pevec) - donated 100,000 kuna

Pevex donated construction materials worth 100,000 kuna for the purpose of the urgent preventive repair of roofs on earthquake damaged buildings in Zagreb.

For more on Croatian companies, follow Made in Croatia. For all you need to know about coronavirus in relation to Croatia, follow our dedicated section.

Paper, stamps and photocopies of obscure documents are, alongside the sea, what Croatia is well known for. It seems the coronavirus crisis has forced Croatia into the 21st century, and not a moment too soon...

As Tomislav Pili/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 21st of April, 2020, the current coronavirus pandemic has proven the importance of digitising a range of economic sectors, and Croatia is, rather shockingly, quite satisfactory in this area, according to an analysis by the European Investment Bank (EIB) entitled ''Who is ready for a new digital age'', which was presented on Monday.

Croatia is ranked among the 'strong countries' on the EIBIS Digitisation Index, given that the Croatian digitisation rate is above the EU average in the construction, services and infrastructure sectors.

Croatia earned 63 points according to the index and is in the company of Slovenia, Sweden, Portugal, Estonia, Belgium, Luxembourg, Slovakia and Austria. The highest value of 84 points was taken by Denmark and the lowest - 48 points - was taken by Lithuania.

In addition, the digitalisation rate in the Croatian services sector is also higher than even the US average, which generally stands better than the European Union, let alone paper-loving-stamp-needing Croatia, in terms of digitisation.

The EIB report states that 40 percent of Croatian companies in the manufacturing and construction sectors have been partially digitised, and 18 percent in manufacturing and 15 percent in construction have been fully digitised.

In the service sector, more than half of Croatian companies are partially digitised, and if fully digitalised companies are added, the share grows to more than 70 percent. In comparison, in the European Union, 40 percent of companies in the sector are partially digitised, and in the US, just under 50 percent of them are.

Among large companies, the rate of digitisation in the service sector in Croatia stands at an impressive 80 percent, while the US average is about 65 percent and the European average is about 55 percent. As expected, small businesses - defined by the EIB's report as having fewer than 50 employees - cannot afford to make major investments in the area, so 40 percent of them in the service sector are digitised, as opposed to every other one being digitised in the European Union and over in the US.

In what segments is Croatia still falling behind?

The extent to which the digitalisation of business brings positive effects is evidenced by the fact that the share of companies who have done so have increased their number of employees in the last three years, or they've at the very least remained more stable than companies that didn't start the process at all.

Namely, the average labour productivity of digitised Croatian companies has reached a value of 11.2, while in the European Union it is above 12, and in the USA it is very close to that same figure. At the same time, the median salary in a digitised Croatian company is around 15,000 euros a year, while the median salary in such a company elsewhere in the European Union is a very different 38,000 euros.

In general, European companies are less digitised than their US competitors, and they're particularly lagging behind in the construction sector. In addition, American companies are investing more and more in improving their business processes. It seems however, that both European and US companies perceive digital infrastructure similarly.

For more on business in Croatia, follow this page. For all you need to know about coronavirus in relation to Croatia, follow our dedicated section.

April 21, 2020 - The Adriatic sea, self-isolation as it once was. As we dare to dream of a possible 2020 season, where Croatia should focus its efforts, and how can Croatian tourism compete on price?

Hvar has been gorgeous these last few days, before today's Manchester rain, as beautiful as I can remember it since I first set eyes on the island I subsequently fell in love with 18 years ago. 

I am very fortunate to have been able to self-isolate here, and the social distancing and lack of visitors has meant that it almost feels like I have the island to myself. 

The weather is warm, the sea inviting, and the aromatic fields offer a variety of sensations, both visual and aromas. 

It takes me right back to when I first became truly aware of tourism in Croatia, in a staff house in Hargeisa in Somaliland back in 2002. 

The Mediterranean as It Once Was, the Croatian National Tourist Board video which came on during a commercial break on CNN - a commercial which changed my life and brought me to a new life in Croatia, where I have lived ever since. 

And Hvar at the moment feels like it did all those years ago. It has changed considerably since then, of course, but now - devoid of tourists, its spectacular nature to the fore - it reminds me more than ever of the time I first discovered it 18 years ago. 

The Mediterranean as It Once Was in 2002.

Self-Isolation as It Once Was in 2020. 

And the tourists will return and new generations will fall in love with this magical island, as I did. The big question is whether that will happen this year, and whether or not there will be a 2020 season at all.

I have noticed growing optimism in recent days on the back of the slight easing of restrictions in various countries. There is talk of a Czech corridor for tourists to the Adriatic, and as the weather improves, the longing for lazy days on the Adriatic as the self-isolation drags on gets ever stronger. 

Will there be a season? Perhaps. I do not have a crystal ball, but as I wrote almost a month (and several lifetimes) ago in Hope v Reality: Will There Be a 2020 Tourist Season in Croatia?, if there is it will be different for sure, and there are several key factors to take into consideration. 

Let's start with flights to Croatia.

Three things should paint the picture of flights to Croatia.

This was the lead banner on the Ryanair website when I wrote my article a month ago, offering deals on September breaks. One month later, the only thing which has been updated on the banner is the photograph. 

The second-biggest budget airline - and a key player in the Croatian tourism market - is easyJet. This from an article on the closing of most of Lonely Planet's operations in The Guardian a few days ago:

Now, even Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou of easyJet, the second-largest budget airline in Europe, thinks his company will feel like a startup again once national lockdowns are lifted.

And as we reported a couple of weeks ago in Goodbye Season 2020? American, Qatar Push Dubrovnik to 2021, Eurowings Cuts Fleet, the inter-continental airlines have already written off season 2020 in its entirety, while cutbacks at Eurowings and Lufthansa are also going to impact the Croatian market. American Airlines was due to fly until October from Philadelphia to Dubrovnik, and so their decision to cancel has less to do with the health threat of corona, and more to do with the economic consequences. With record unemployment in the States, there will be much fewer people travelling. And for many who do travel, price is going to be a big factor. A short hop to Mexico will be a better budget option.  

Less flights is better news for Croatian tourism than the competition

Although less flights is not great news for the tourism industry, it will actually impact Croatia much less than the competition. Imagine the challenges ahead for the likes of Greece, Turkey, Egypt, Tunisia, even Montenegro, Spain and Italy, to get foreign tourists to their destinations. While Croatia has enjoyed considerable success in attracting long-haul tourists - United States, South Korea, China, Japan, Brazil and Australia come to mind - the vast majority of tourists arrivals (about 75% from memory) come by land, mostly car. Although the numbers will be less, there is much more certainty in these markets. As long as the virus is under control, borders open and the tourists have transport, they can and will come. 

I was talking to an F&B manager in a 5-star hotel this week, and he told me that they were adding a lot of Austrian wines to the list, as they were expecting a much higher percentage of Austrians and Germans in the post-corona era. And if this survey is to be believed, a whopping 27% of Austrians want to holiday in Croatia when this is all over. 

The markets of Slovenia, Austria, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Hungary, Czechia, Slovakia, Poland and Serbia have always been important to Croatian tourism. And never more so than this year. And with the lack of flights and close proximity to Croatia, Croatia is in pole position to accommodate as many tourists as want and can afford to travel. And there is one big juicy bone that will be driving them wild with desire in their isolation. 

Let's put progressive tourism on hold, for 2020 is all about the Adriatic

In the pre-corona era, I wrote a lot about the lack of strategy and vision of Croatian tourism, of overtourism on the coast and the over-reliance on the Adriatic. I presented an alternative vision in Branding Croatia for the Future: 5 Gifts and Trends to Focus On. I still stand by every word of this as a strategy for the future, but these are extraordinary times. And after all these restrictions and deprivation, the thought of a gorgeous beach and a dip in the glistening Adriatic has become a 'must-have' for many. I have been posting lots of photos and videos of Hvar on social media, and I can see the desire, the longing, and the promise to be on Hvar soon from many, many people. 

As is often the case in the Kingdom of Accidental Tourism, a combination of factors will enable this tourism to happen 'slucajno', without any real effort - lack of flights mean other destinations are harder to get to, Croatia has what everyone wants - over 1,000 islands and 1,777 km of fabulous Adriatic coast, with every man and his dog desperate to escape to the sea. But if we could come up with an effective campaign and really play on those emotions and desires, the payback could be much higher. Perhaps Self-Isolation as It Once Was is not the right approach, but there are marketing departments with more resources and experience than this fat Irish blogger. 

So IF we can have a season, then things perhaps look as dire as they might seem. Everything depends on the virus, of course. But assuming that all is ok for a later season start, the other main thing that could really affect things is...

Price, the Achilles heel of Croatian tourism, and how to fix this

I am really fascinated to see how the Croatian hospitality industry will respond to the realities of post-corona tourism with regard to pricing. I expect some to keep things exactly as they are, and even some to increase prices as they do each year without adding any extra benefit to the consumer. They will price themselves out of a much more price-sensitive market, and the traditional greed of some tourism businesses couple with the insane tax burden that is imposed on the tourism industry and the rest of the country, could nullify the golden gifts of restricted access to the competition and the proximity of the Adriatic. 

But I believe a large number of businesses will be realistic about price and realign their prices accordingly. Better to make something from the season, give guests a great (and great-value) holiday, in the hope of enticing them back next year and beyond. But how to get the message of those cheaper prices out to potential visitors?

I have been trying to catch up with technology in recent months, and watching the Croatian Government's handling of the crisis has not only been a pleasant surprise, but also very instructive. From the Koronavirus Viber group which now reaches 441,000 subscribers with the latest in an instant (in a country of 4 million) to the dedicated corona app, Andrija. the authorities have very quickly and effectively been able to get their message out and engage with the public. 

Which gave me an idea. Why not use a similar approach for promoting Croatian tourism, especially to get out the message on price, for those who wanted to price things realistically and encourage tourists to come?

(Photo credit Taliah Bradbury)

Let's create an app called something better than Post-CROrona and make it available to any Croatian tourism business which wants to offer a realistic price for season 2020. Each business would get their own page within the map and category of tourism. On that page, the business could upload some basic info, a link to its pricing page of its official website, as well as details of 3 of its Post CROrona offers, and a stated % discount of its list prices to reflect the current reality. The business would be free to increase or decrease the percentage in real time. 

If properly created and promoted, and if enough businesses decide to engage, this would bring all the tourism businesses in Croatia with affordable and realistic prices into one place. The potential tourist downloads the app, and can then see just how affordable Croatia 2020 could be if they decided to support the businesses offering the discounts. 

Some nice free promo for the progressive businesses trying to get back on their feet, and some nice PR for Croatia against the accusation that is it an expensive destination. And some nice affordable holidays for those who do their homework and choose to relax in one of the most beautiful places on Earth. 

Would it work? Who knows, but maybe, and maybe it is worth a try. Nothing is certain in the Corona Era, except one thing... 

(Photo credit Taliah Bradbury)

Hvar is truly one of the most gorgeous places on the planet. As it will be when you make your next visit. Let's hope that can be this year. 

For the latest news from Croatia's premier island, visit the TCN Hvar section.  

As Novac/Filip Pavic writes on the 21st of April, 2020, more than 2.1 million Croats have now turned to online shopping during the coronavirus epidemic and have made it clear that they plan to continue to shop that way in the future. Of those, at least 130,000 people have not purchased online before, according to a study by Equestris.

In addition, according to Sandro Baricevic, Equestris' director, a comparative analysis of respondents between the ages of 18 and 60 shows a 30 percent increase in online shopping habits in Croats over 50 years of age. This age group is one that, according to popular belief, is otherwise much less used to new technologies. All of this testifies to a dramatic change in consumer habits due to the inability to shop at physical stores owing to the coronavirus pandemic.

''There has certainly been a paradigm shift, as indicated by information that online purchases are now being made by people who have never done so before. Additionally, according to our data, 40,000 new users over the age of 50 have expressed their intention to shop online in the near future,'' Baricevic pointed out.

Similar data comes from the Croatian market analysis firm Shopper's Mind. According to them, almost 75 percent of adult Croats will regularly shop online in the coming months if current anti-epidemic measures are maintained. This was shown by the analysis based on the data of the Jeftinije.hr site, the largest Croatian comparative shopping portal.

This represents a significant jump, more than 80 percent when compared to last year, when only 45 percent of Croats regularly used online stores according to the European Commission (Digital Scoreboard).

''In the case of an extension of several months of the current situation, I'm convinced that we can expect a strong increase in online shopping from existing customers and the transition to new product groups that will be purchased online,'' replied Darko Dujic, an online store specialist and the director of the aforementioned company Shopper's Mind.

As for the products being purchased online, there has been a dramatic decline in everything that Croats typically ordered the most from their homes so far. For example, the number of orders for clothing, footwear and fashion accessories has halved, with interest in jewellery, watches and home appliances also falling significantly.

Food and grocery shopping, on the other hand, has seen excellent growth. According to an Equestris analysis, before March, 24 percent of Croats bought food and food products from local retail chains online. In March, that number jumped to 39 percent, and in the coming months, nearly 50 percent of Croats will buy groceries online. Cleaning and hygiene products also jumped from 37 percent up to 53 percent, and the purchase of pet food online increased by a quarter when compared to the pre-March period.

There is also increasing demand for devices such as webcams and laptops, as well as household and cleaning products, such as humidifiers and ionizers, coffee makers and bread makers, as well as gaming consoles, board games and toys for children.

Asked what this all means for the future of ''physical'' stores, Darko Dujic of Shopper's Mind replied that "a new reality could wipe out at least 10 percent of physical stores in different sectors."

''If traditional channels once accounted for 95 percent of total traffic, we can suppose that 70 or 75 percent would work in this new reality. What does this mean for the ''productivity'' of a square metre of sales space? Of course, that will be drastically reduced, which in turn means that there are numerous shops that will no longer be profitable, Dujic predicted.

Sandro Baricevic of Equestris will not completely agree with these estimates, and he believes that that there is no rivalry between physical and online stores.

''These meet different needs and situations for the consumer. The data shows that, if we compare online and physical shopping, 37 percent of respondents spend more when they physically make a purchase than they do online,'' Baricevic argues that physical stores are, at least for the time being, more profitable for retailers because they encourage shoppers to impulsively shop as well as purchase what they came in for.

''eCommerce traffic in Croatia is growing at around 10 percent every year, reaching 449 million euros last year. However, our survey from half a year ago found that one fifth of internet users shop online, and this is not yet at the level of Western Europe or of the US. The coronavirus epidemic may reduce that resistance,'' said Marcel Majsan, the president of eCommerce Croatia.

In addition, the responsibility lies with the dealers themselves. They should make it easier for customers to buy and return goods as easily as possible, thus building trust. Now is the time, noted Majsan, that traders who have not paid too much attention to offline synchronisation and online sales do so if they want to survive.

They can do this in a variety of ways. If a customer has a loyalty card that has been collecting points for years, the merchant should allow him to use it to purchase something online. For buyers who don't know how to make a purchase online but would do it by phone or SMS, the merchant should make it easy for him to provide his information and send him the goods with the option of payment upon delivery.

The Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK) didn't want to speculate on what changes the current coronavirus epidemic will bring about in the trade sector and whether or not there will be a major change in the "consumer paradigm", but they believe that consumer habits will change somewhat - and forcibly so.

"The fact is that the average consumer today is informed, increasingly critical and increasingly digitised. Price is still one of the most important factors in making a decision on purchasing something and will remain so in the situation caused by the coronavirus epidemic. Time will tell, as will the length of the pandemic, which concrete changes await us in the changing of consumer behaviour habits,'' the chamber stated.

They also pointed out that, in spite of expectations, the stabilisation of consumption is happening, which can partly be attributed to the growth of online commerce. According to their data, Croats spent 1.194 billion kuna over the Easter holidays, which is 14 percent less than they did in the same period last year, but this doesn't include the results of the products OPGs have sold online.

''When we take into account that these figures don't include the results of sales made by OPGs via online channels, which is something that has increased significantly in the last few weeks, we can say that we're dealing with the coronavirus crisis quite solidly for the time being, that is, there's been no drastic drop in consumption, which is something that we have all feared,'' Ravlic explained.

According to a survey conducted by the Ja Trgovac magazine and the Hendal Agency, nearly two thirds of Croats intended to save before Easter, and most people planned to spend less than 500 kuna. According to the Tax Administration, a total of 976 million kuna was fiscalised in trade and 838.2 million kuna was fiscalised in retail trade (from Good Thursday to Easter Monday).

The strong and large companies found the ''online switch'' the easiest, and the question is how, after the coronavirus epidemic ends, OPGs will manage to continue selling their products through Facebook.

In terms of merchant perspective, Marcel Majsan, the president of eCommerce Croatia, believes that an online sales channel doesn't work for every merchant. He said that the transition of traffic from physical stores to the online sphere was much easier for large companies than it was for Croatia's very many OPGs.

''Since the outbreak of the coronavirus epidemic, we've seen an increase in inquiries for ''quick fixes'', such as Facebook sales, most of the OPGs that have not sold their products online so far haven't done so because they didn't have the time or need to do so. Unfortunately, I don't believe that such a way of selling will satisfy them in the long run because it doesn't allow them to track inventories, build a customer base, send out customer order notifications, track shipping, or many other functionalities that customers just expect today,'' explains Majsan.

Nevertheless, Equestris' data on purchases from OPGs at the beginning of April shows that things are somewhat more optimistic. As many as 30 percent of Croats, at the height of isolation, ordered groceries from domestic OPGs online. At the same time, buyers weren't guided by the speed of delivery, which is one of the more important criteria in “classic” online shopping, but mostly by the quality of the food (according to 78 percent of respondents) and price (according to 54 percent of respondents).

As for the products themselves, customers mostly ordered fresh vegetables, fresh fruits, eggs and dairy products.

Make sure to follow our dedicated section for all you need to know about coronavirus in relation to Croatia.

ZAGREB, April 21, 2020 - President Zoran Milanović visited the PPK Meat Industry factory in Karlovac to see how the food supply chain was functioning amid the coronavirus crisis, particularly the Pivac Group which together with PPK generates a turnover of about €500 million.

Milanović told reporters that PPK seemed to be coping well with unexpected risks and that if a similar situation were to ever occur again some lessons have been taught.

PPK CEO Igor Miljak said that they showed the president their daily routine in light of the coronavirus crisis, informing him of the lack of raw materials and the number of animals bred which covers only about a half of PPK's needs for raw materials.

The president was told of the high level of safety in the meat processing industry with regard to viruses and bacteria and that everything was being done in line with veterinary and public health standards.

However, checks have been stepped up at the entrance to the factory where workers are tested for body temperature and if there were to be any anomalies with a worker or their families or friends they would be relieved from the production line. Distance between workers is maintained and shift work has been introduced, Miljak said, stressing that so far not one worker has been infected.

PPK did not record a decrease in production in March and April as households increased their stocks, or at Easter when more meat is traditionally produced, he added. A decrease in production can be expected if the tourism season is affected.

Miljak explained that when the crisis emerged there were some difficulties with the supply of raw materials, yet deliveries were maintained. However, with a threat of the borders being closed, Croatia's lack of self-sufficiency in raw materials became obvious.

PPK has 560 employees. There have not been any lay-offs nor should there be in the foreseeable future. The company exports about 10% of its production, Miljak said.

Milanović said that Croatia needs to start making political decisions and not those based on expertise. At first Croatia responded instinctively to the outbreak of coronavirus, as did most of the world.

"Today we know a lot more about the disease than we did two weeks ago and some decisions need to be made at the political level and not by experts," said Milanović.

More coronavirus news can be found in the Lifestyle section.