The DROGERIE Channel in Georgia: A specialized format for everyday care

This overview combines GAMMA Census 2023, providing a comprehensive view of the Drogerie channel’s retail structure and geographic presence in Georgia, with BESIDE, GAMMA’s consumer research framework capturing shopping behavior and channel usage.

The Drogerie channel in Georgia is represented by specialized stores offering cosmetics, personal care and household care products, and by its nature occupies an intermediate position between pharmacy retail and FMCG retail.

The format is focused on everyday care for oneself and the home, creating a distinct shopping scenario that differs both from the medical logic of pharmacies and from the universal, assortment-driven approach of supermarkets.

Role of the Channel in the Retail structure:

Drogerie serves as a specialized channel for non-medical demand, concentrating on the following categories:

-personal & beauty care,
-home care,
-regularly purchased non-food FMCG products.

Unlike pharmacies, where the dominant mission is “problem solving,” Drogerie operates within a logic of prevention, care, cleanliness and everyday quality of life.
Unlike supermarkets, it offers a narrower, curated assortment, where brand, quality and trust play a critical role in consumer choice.

Scale and Infrastructure:

According to GAMMA Census 2023, the Drogerie channel in Georgia comprised 920 retail outlets.

Key infrastructure characteristics:

-Total retail space: 61,500 sq. m
-Average store size: 35 sq. m
-Dominance of traditional formats (64% of total retail space)

This structure highlights Drogerie’s role as a urban, convenience-oriented channel for regular demand, embedded into consumers’ everyday shopping routes.

Geography and Density of Presence:

The Drogerie channel in Georgia demonstrates a pronounced urban concentration:

-70% of outlets are located in Tbilisi
-Average national density: 0.5 outlets per 1,000 inhabitants

The highest density levels are observed in economically active regions (Tbilisi, Batumi, Kutaisi), while in smaller and less urbanized areas the format remains limited.

This confirms that Drogerie is highly sensitive to:

-population density,
-purchasing power,
-an established culture of personal and home care.

Consumer Purchase Behavior:

From a behavioral perspective, the Drogerie channel in Georgia remains strongly offline-driven:

-79% of purchases are made in physical stores,
-6% are made online,
-15% of consumers do not follow a fixed purchasing scenario.

For key personal care and home care categories:

-visual and tactile contact is essential,
-merchandising and in-store navigation play a significant role,
-brand strength and trust are critical decision factors.

In its current configuration, online acts as a supporting channel, rather than a full substitute for offline retail.

Competitive Logic of the Channel:

The Drogerie channel competes:
-with pharmacies for non-medical and preventive demand,
-with supermarkets for home care and regular purchases,
-with cosmetic chains for the beauty-oriented consumer.
Its key competitive advantage lies in the balance between functionality (home care) and emotion (personal care), as well as in the ability to build sustainable loyalty through regular consumption.

Overall Assessment and Outlook:

Key conclusion
The Drogerie channel in Georgia is a specialized, urban format for everyday personal and home care, already established as a standalone channel, yet still at a stage of selective and targeted development.
Growth potential is driven by:
-strengthening the role of home care as a frequency driver,
-expansion of personal & beauty care categories,
-development of omnichannel scenarios,
-cautious regional expansion in economically active areas.
In the short term, Drogerie is unlikely to become a mass channel; however, in the medium term it has strong potential to reinforce its position as a key non-medical channel for care and comfort within urban retail.

GAMMA Research will continue to monitor the development of Georgia’s retail sectors and we would be pleased to welcome market players as participants in our research projects and partners seeking a deeper understanding of their consumers and confident, data-driven decision-making.