The principle "I'm not rich enough to buy cheap things" no longer works – economist

In Ukraine, since the full-scale invasion, the purchasing power of citizens has significantly decreased. This is confirmed by research – Ukrainians are trying to save on everything, even on medicines. Patients are increasingly choosing a cheaper analogue instead of a well-known brand. And as the analysis of pricing policy shows, the cost of the same drug from different domestic manufacturers can vary significantly, UNN writes.

The consumer chooses with their walletAccording to a study by Gradus Research, in 2024, the trend of consumer savings intensified in Ukraine. Two-thirds of respondents (65%) preferred cheaper brands last year. At the same time, food and medicine traditionally topped consumption and were the categories on which people saved the least.

Andriy Novak, head of the Committee of Economists of Ukraine, told UNN that the trend towards saving will continue in 2025.

Undoubtedly, partly due to the long-term war in Ukraine, the purchasing power of most Ukrainians has significantly decreased, and therefore most Ukrainians choose goods and services based on the main principle – the minimum price. And even those who previously considered themselves to belong to the so-called middle class, and from time to time bought goods of medium cost, even expensive goods, branded goods, are now forced to also move into the category of consumers who choose goods and services precisely by the criterion of the lowest possible price for these goods and services.

According to him, this also led to the reformatting of markets in favor of cheap manufacturers and cheap goods.

Due to the decrease in purchasing power, most Ukrainians are forced to choose rational consumption, which boils down to consuming the cheapest possible goods and services. The principle that I am not rich enough to buy cheap things, now it does not work for most Ukrainians.

Danylo Hetmantsev, head of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Finance, Tax and Customs Policy, noted that Ukrainians living on the subsistence minimum this year did not even have enough money for food. According to him, the same situation will be next year, as the government is laying unrealistic figures in the 2026 budget.

According to calculations by the Ministry of Social Policy, the real cost of food alone as of June 2025 was higher than the subsistence minimum proposed by the Government for each of the main social and demographic groups of the population for 2026. The figures speak for themselves.

They also save on medicinesA sociological study indicates that Ukrainians are concerned about the rising price of medicines this year, as 62% of their expenses go to drugs. Therefore, they consider this a problem.

If earlier people hardly saved on medicines, now Ukrainians are increasingly choosing the cheapest analogue of the drug they need in pharmacies.

“Ukrainians are less and less paying attention to the manufacturer’s brand and more and more often choosing drugs based on cost. People are trying to buy cheaper. If earlier they came to the pharmacy and did not ask the price, now they come and say: give me the drug or something similar, only cheaper,” – said Olena Prudnikova, head of the NGO “All-Ukrainian Association “Mykolaiv Pharmaceutical Association Pharmrada” in a comment to UNN.

For many patients, the brand is no longer associated with quality; instead, price has become the key criterion for preference.

New legislation also encourages the purchase of cheaper medicines. Pharmacies are now obliged to have the cheapest drug on the market in their assortment, and pharmacists are obliged to offer it to patients. So, if you come to a pharmacy for paracetamol, you will be obliged to offer “Paracetamol-Zdorovya” for 24.30 UAH, and not the previously popular “Paracetamol-Darnytsia”, because the cost of the latter is 30.90 UAH, according to the online aggregator for searching for medicines Tabletki.ua.

The same story with another popular antipyretic drug. For example, pharmacists will offer you “Ibuprofen” from “Borshchahiv Chemical and Pharmaceutical Plant” for 59 UAH instead of the usual “Ibuprofen-Darnytsia” for 70.30 UAH.

In addition, the pharmacist will now be obliged to offer “Validol” produced by “Farmak”, as it is the cheapest on the market and costs 12.10 UAH. Its closest competitor is 2 UAH more expensive.

The well-known headache remedy “Citramon-Darnytsia” is being pushed out of the market by an analogue that is more than 15 UAH cheaper.

There is also a striking price difference for a popular sore throat remedy during colds. Borshchahiv’s “Septefril” is sold for 44.48 UAH, which is twice cheaper than its analogues.

Of course, such an approach may not appeal to those market players who lose the price battle and whose sales decline as a result.

It is important to understand that due to the decline in purchasing power, Ukrainians are increasingly choosing the lowest price, and this trend has even affected medicines. As a result, cheap analogues are displacing more expensive drugs, and the pharmaceutical market is changing the rules of the game in favor of manufacturers with minimal prices. For the state, this is a signal: as long as the population’s incomes are falling, the main criterion for patients’ choice will only be their wallet.

The fact is that companies, especially those of medium and higher levels, always adapt to market trends, and any company, even if it produces expensive brands, can always open lines of cheaper brands of medium and low cost. That is, those companies that adapt conquer most markets – those markets that they may not have paid attention to before. But now the economic situation forces them to also change the structure of production, the structure of pricing for their goods. And whoever adapts and opens cheaper lines will ultimately win.