The Basque retail trade Barometer shows a consolidated but unequal sector: micro-enterprises with one or two people face more difficulties in investing and digitalising than larger establishments.
The Basque retail trade Barometer corresponding to its new edition, published by camarabilbao.com, portrays a Basque commercial sector with a solid foundation: businesses with decades of experience, run by individuals with extensive expertise and a strong connection to their territory. However, the same study detects an uneven advance among different types of establishments.
The sector's structure is dominated by micro-enterprises, shops that employ one or two people. The size of the establishment is the variable that most conditions the results: the smaller the business, the greater the obstacles to adapt to changes, undertake investments, diversify complementary services, or advance in digitalisation.
In terms of digitalisation, the barometer notes progress in connectivity, management programs, electronic payment methods, and the use of social networks, as well as a significant extension of additional services and sustainability initiatives. However, in the smallest companies, these improvements respond to immediate needs for management, communication, or customer service, rather than a fundamental transformation.
The study outlines a commercial sector operating at two speeds, where the incorporation of changes occurs unevenly and, in many cases, from a more practical than transformative logic.
The report concludes that the Basque retail trade maintains a solid foundation and capacity to adapt to new economic and social dynamics, but this adaptation does not reach all establishments equally.
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