Supermarkets

If you decide to buy products in Belarus, don't worry about finding a proper shop, as supermarkets, hypermarkets and just small shops are at every step, and some of them work around the clock.

Annually, the Ministry of Trade of Belarus sums up the rating of the best food stores in the country. A supermarket must meet a number of requirements to be included in this rating.

Every year, market players implement new solutions. For example, in 2018, the availability of cooked food, bakery and home-made food became the standard for all stores, although this phenomenon was almost never seen anywhere else 2-3 years ago.

The main trend is the introduction of food courts in supermarkets and hypermarkets. Euroopt Super was the first who tried this format in Belarus in 2016, while in 2018, food courts began to appear one by one in hypermarkets and supermarkets.

Among other novelties, offered by retailers to their customers, they will continue to introduce in the near future - "Salad bar" and " Solyanka bar". And also cleaning, cutting and marinating of fish, preparation of minced meat and marinating of meat, slicing of cheese, sausages, preparation of freshly squeezed juice from the selected fruits. Shops also will provide free WI-FI, wireless phone charging points on the tables of food courts, refrigerants for drinks, etc.

You can pay for purchases in Belarusian shops in cash, but only in Belarusian rubles, as well as with a card of one of the international payment systems: Visa or MasterCard. In recent years, Belarus has also developed an electronic money settlement system.

A pleasant bonus for visitors is the fact that in Belarus since 2013 the Tax Free system has been introduced, thanks to it a foreign citizen can refund VAT from Belarusian goods purchased in our country.

Some residents of foreign countries can use Tax Free service. If you live on the territory of the EEU Customs Union, you will not be able to use the Tax Free service. Today, the EEU Customs Union includes Belarus, Russia, Kazakhstan, Armenia, and Kyrgyzstan.

More than 400 shops are connected to the Tax Free system in Belarus. Buyers are refunded 12.5% of the purchase amount.

The sphere of retail trade in Belarus is developing every year more and more and does everything possible for comfortable shopping not only for its citizens, but also for tourists.