Some Czechs are probably counting on spending this summer at home in the garden or at the cottage. Sellers are highly interested in hot tubs, swimming pools, and ice cream makers. Demand for picnic and camping equipment is also up year-on-year. Czechs want to actively spend their time by the water, and interest in paddleboards has recently increased online.

Mountfield, a garden equipment chain, has recorded a record demand for hot tubs this year. “For example, sales have now jumped six times in June compared to the comparable period last year,” said company spokeswoman Kateřina Böhmová.

People are buying both acrylic and inflatable hot tubs, she said. Customers can purchase a luxury acrylic whirlpool for CZK 99,990 and an inflatable one for CZK 12,500. “This year, we decided not to increase prices even at the expense of lower profits, and thus strengthen our position on the market even more,” Böhmová added.

Mountfield has not lost interest in swimming pools either, which people have been buying more of in the last two years because of limited travel abroad due to the coronavirus pandemic. “Covid may have subsided, but people’s fears have been replaced by the situation with the war in Ukraine, the price hikes—and therefore the increase in holiday prices—as well as rising inflation,” Böhmová said.

Pool searches in Czech e-shops increased 127 percent year on year in May, according to Samuel Huba, CEO of e-shop creation and management company Shoptet. People don’t want to put off more considerable pool-type investments anymore, mainly because of inflation and the associated price increases. We see a tendency to buy more expensive things at ‘old prices,’ he said.

Data from shopping guide Heureka shows that people are also buying more children’s swimming pools, with demand up 69 percent in the last week.

Shoptet also noted that searches for ice cream makers have increased by 84 percent in the last two months compared to the previous period.

Heureka.cz’s chief analyst, Michal Bůžek, added that the average price of home ice cream makers online is around CZK 2,500, the same as in previous months and years. The exception, he said, was this February, when the price more than doubled and ice cream makers cost on average over CZK 5,200.

“Compared to last year, it seems Czechs are more prepared for outdoor activities,” Huba said. In May, he said, searches for picnic blankets rose 127 percent year-on-year, and people were looking for camping equipment 133 percent more than in May last year.

For water fun, Bůžek said paddleboards are the Internet’s top hit, with interest up 76 percent in the past week. He added that people buy a paddleboard in e-shops for an average of CZK 6,000 to CZK 8,000.

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