Bar and cafe businesses decline in Tirana, more diverse services

 An empty bar in Tirana

 For three decades after the fall of communism, the most common idea for starting a business in Albania was related to cafes and wholesale and retail markets. With almost 19,000 bars and restaurants, Albania was on track to become the world's number one destination for local hangouts.

However, a trend that started during the pandemic and continues today shows that Albanian entrepreneurs are moving away from these low-income businesses and focusing on new and more specialized ventures, mainly in the service sector, local media say.

In the capital alone, there were 22,613 service units at the beginning of this year, with the strongest growth compared to all other categories. These include travel agencies, real estate agencies, gyms, laundries, various courses, repair services, and many others.

On the other hand, new businesses registered in the category of minority sales, which includes exactly the local hangouts and markets, had the lowest number in at least a decade, with less than 2,000 new licenses in 2022. In 2016, this figure was even over 5,200 businesses of this type.

In recent years, the capital has also seen an increase in construction projects, more freelance professionals such as dentists and notaries, and more businesses in the transport sector, while maintaining a constant number of production units, including furniture, bakeries, pastry shops, etc. According to Eurostat data, the business model that Albania was following until recently produced lower income for employees than anywhere else in Europe, a phenomenon known as low productivity in economic terms.