First it was the car industry copying supermarkets’ ‘BOGOF’ (buy one, get one free) promotions. Here in the UK, there was the recent offer from one well known broker on Dodge Avengers (two for GBP20,000) while, in Auckland, New Zealand, a new dealership was launched recently offering BOGOFs like a free Citroën C4 hatchback with every C6 sold or a free Fiat Punto with every Alfa Romeo Brera. Now, in Slovakia, other retailers are borrowing the scrap-for-new scheme that has recently boosted new car sales. According to a news agency report, the scrappage scheme there has sparked copycat slogans to revive washing machines, trainers or wallet sales amid the economic crisis.
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From “Have your old wallet scrapped and get a new one with a 40% discount,” to “Bring us your old trainers and get a EUR10 discount for a new pair,” Slovak shopkeepers are adapting the successful car trade-up scheme for all kinds of consumer goods.
“Scrap-for-new became a fashionable expression. Consumers are amused by it, it’s trendy,” Lubomir Drahovsky of the Terno market research agency told AFP.
The Slovak government introduced the scrapping incentive, which mirrors similar subsidies in France and Germany, in a bid to halt a slump in new car sales in the former communist economy driven by production of automobiles and electronics.
Part of larger anti-credit crisis measures, the programme offers Slovaks who scrap cars older than 10 years up to EUR2,000 (US$2,600) to buy a new vehicle.
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By GlobalDataSo far, nearly 45,000 old cars have been scrapped and car sales there rose in March after two months of decline, AFP noted.
There’s now even a shortage of some models, with some would-be buyers now on dealers’ waiting lists.
