Online retail is booming – Retailers want relief for brick-and-mortar stores

The Swiss retail sector saw slight growth in the first half of 2026. While online retail continued to grow strongly, clothing, furniture, and other non-food stores once again struggled with declining sales. The industry is therefore calling for policy relief—including more flexible store hours in the evenings and on weekends.

Nominal retail sales rose by 1.2 percent in the first half of the year compared with the same period last year, according to an analysis of debit and credit card transactions published Thursday by the Swiss Retail Federation. Online sales increased by 3.0 percent. Brick-and-mortar retail grew by only 1.0 percent.

Growth in brick-and-mortar retail was primarily driven by the food sector, where sales rose by 3.8 percent. The sector benefited from ongoing population growth and rising demand for basic necessities.

In the brick-and-mortar non-food retail sector, however, the crisis continues, resulting in a 3.3 percent decline in sales. The sectors most affected were apparel and footwear, furniture and home goods, do-it-yourself, and leisure and toys.

The association explained that this trend shows that online and brick-and-mortar retail are increasingly diverging. While digital sales continue to gain market share, pressure on traditional retail spaces is mounting.

The Swiss Retail Federation, which represents 2,300 retailers (excluding large-scale distributors), is therefore calling for better conditions for brick-and-mortar retail. These include more flexible store hours, simpler permitting procedures, and improved access and parking options. In addition, the association opposes additional regulatory and financial burdens on the retail sector resulting from higher value-added tax rates or additional payroll taxes.