The last two years have been extremely difficult for merchants. With high inflation, daily increases in energy prices, and a recession looming, the implementation of the euro is just one of the challenges that merchants must face. Although there is much public discussion about the introduction of the euro, in practical terms, many things remain unclear for merchants, which is why conferences like this one, where practical instructions and clarifications will be provided, are of utmost importance,” said Denis Čupić, president of the Association of Trade and Logistics, opening the conference titled “Implementation of the Euro – Everything You Need to Know”, where panels were held by representatives of the Ministry of Finance, the Croatian National Bank, the Ministry of Economy, and the State Inspectorate.
More than 150 merchants participated in the conference, and Čupić emphasized that the Association is ready to be the bearer of other activities that will facilitate this process for merchants.
The Vice President of the Association and director of the LPP group for Croatia and Slovenia, Ana Babić, presented key issues from the merchants’ perspective. As she noted, although she leads an international group that already operates in euros in most markets, and although they have been preparing for this process for a year, they are still not even close to being ready.
– Communication with institutions is good, but the real work is just beginning, and greater engagement from the institutions is needed. There are many details to pay attention to, and our business needs to change fundamentally: starting from the fact that we will calculate salaries differently, that we will have accounting in two currencies, that in some cases we will have to display even four prices for the same product – to the fact that we will have to prepare for the possibility that change for the same bill can be returned in two currencies,” Ana Babić presented a small part of what they are preparing for and jokingly added that while merchants were resting this summer, they were indeed resting.
The panels were held by the Vice Governor of the Croatian National Bank, Michael Faulend, State Secretary Nataša Mikuš Žigman from the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development, Assistant Chief State Inspector Vedrana Filipović Grčić, and the introductory presentation was given by the special advisor to the Prime Minister Zvonimir Savić. During the round table, the audience was able to ask questions, and most questions were directed towards the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development regarding the blacklists of merchants and who will be the one to decide whether a merchant raised prices due to the introduction of the euro or had to raise prices due to inflation and the continuous rise in costs, which we have been witnessing for months.
