Fabián Campos is a Business Economist who graduated from the Universidad Metropolitana and serves as the Coordinator of Scenarios and the Datanálisis Multisectorial Business Survey.
Guacamaya, November 9, 2025. In our previous article, “How are companies financed in Venezuela?“, we explored the various alternatives companies utilize to secure financing. In a context of limited banking credit, rising prices, and exchange rate uncertainty, corporate financing becomes crucial. But what implications does this have for the end consumer?
The Venezuelan consumer grapples with similar hurdles. Like companies, they seek alternatives to “finance” their consumption and “preserve” their income.
According to the findings of the Datanalisis National Omnibus Survey, regarding their purchasing mindset, 42.9% of participants indicated that they “plan everything carefully to stretch their money as much as possible,” while 29.8% noted that they “focus on addressing daily needs, buying what they can with what they have.”
Since Adam Smith introduced the notion of “saving as the source of investment” in The Wealth of Nations (1776) and John Maynard Keynes established the “Consumption Function” in The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money (1936), “Consumption” has been viewed by economists (and non-economists) as something “opposed” to “Saving.” The concept is straightforward: what isn’t consumed is saved (and may or may not be invested).
But what occurs when the ability to save is restricted or saving itself becomes somewhat “inconvenient”?
Given that one of the primary strategies for companies in Venezuela is to maximize labor commitments (salaries, remunerations, bonuses) in bolívars, it’s reasonable to assume that on the “15th and last day of the month” the market is “flooded” with bolívars.
Consequently, the Venezuelan consumer has three options:
1. Save in bolívars: Not very effective, considering they face a relatively steady devaluation and a rise in the price levels.
2. Save in foreign currency: A sound strategy; however, the scarcity of foreign currency at the official rate (BCV exchange rate) leads the consumer to rely on unofficial markets with inflated prices (or rates), diminishing their ability to acquire foreign currency as the gap between these two “currency prices” widens.
3. Spend to save: This option, although seemingly counterintuitive, represents an “efficient outcome” for Venezuelans, who prefer to “protect” their purchasing power by acquiring goods and services at the “official price,” even maintaining a consumption rate above the norm.
This third option reflects a unique aspect of the Venezuelan economy, contradicting years of economic theory: Venezuelans use consumption as a savings mechanism. Not necessarily because they “want to” or have it “in their plans,” but because it stands as a superior alternative compared to saving in bolívars or purchasing foreign currency at unofficial rates. This is where the notion of “I’d rather stock my pantry” comes into play, as consumers, akin to businesses, tend to create “overstock” instead of allowing their savings capacity to dwindle.
This presents an opportunity for companies to capitalize by offering options that encourage this “over-purchasing” while still grasping the core principle of the Venezuelan consumer: They buy the best they can with what they have. That is, without yielding to the urge to compete on “price” at the cost of “quality.” If there are still doubts, one can observe how lowering prices as a standalone strategy distinguishes the companies that have seen the steepest decline in their sales.