Restrictions on retail trade having direct impact on advertising market - JSDecaux Latvija

RIGA - The longer Covid-19 restrictions on retail trade remain in place, the more they are impacting the advertising market, Jelena Brokane, head of JSDecaux Latvija advertising agency, told LETA. 

The head of JSDecaux Latvija noted that outdoor advertising is closely connected with people's mobility behavior. "The tougher the restrictions on mobility, contacts or retail trade, the fewer people are there on the streets and the more they are staying at home in front of the screens," said Brokane. 

In her words, a swift change of behavior that happened last March and April also affected outdoor advertising, among other things. "In annual terms, outdoor advertising suffered more from the revenue drop than other advertising segments," Brokane said, adding that while the entire advertising market contracted  by 16 percent in 2020, outdoor advertising shrank by 36 percent. 

"It was the spring months that caused the reduction in outdoor advertising, as fearing the pandemic, many people chose to stay at home. Obviously, in this situation, a great part of the advertising budget was shifted to online media," Brokane said. 

She indicated that JSDecaux Latvija used this time to fulfill a significant social function by educating and informing the public about Covid-19 and its prevention. 

JSDecaux Latvija, registered in 1996, has a share capital of EUR 1.074 million, according to information from Firmas.lv. The company's sole owner is France's JSDecaux Europe Holding.

JSDecaux Latvija closed 2019 with EUR 4.5 million in turnover and a profit of EUR 10,218. The company has yet to release its performance results for 2020.