The retail sector in Myanmar is highly fragmented

Small, family-owned, traditional shops still account for the majority of the market, making it difficult for brands to control how their products are being displayed or sold. Our research in the retail sector has centred around helping clients overcome this challenge by monitoring distribution, sales and your visibility at the POS – for example. With the influx of many foreign brands, the communication space at the POS has become more crowded and more competitive so maintaining brand visibility has become more challenging.

In the past, Modern Trade has been largely restricted to the major city of Yangon and has mainly catered for the Myanmar higher classes and expatriates; but this has changed. In the last years, hypermarkets and supermarket chains have extended their reach to other cities. Chains of modern convenience stores have mushroomed in Yangon and Mandalay targeting also the lower classes, stocking affordable but reputable national and international brands.