The Kaufland chain presently has 36 hypermarkets, of which five were opened this year, with the average investment per store at some €8 million. The German retailer’s total investment in Romania at the end of 2007 amounted to some €350 million. It also plans to expand its Ploiesti logistics center this year.
Kaufland originally announced it would open 10 hypermarkets, but due to a drop in construction work and delays caused by builders, there will be fewer new stores this year.
The group’s medium-term plans involve a total of 50 units, mostly in small and medium-sized town. A Kaufland commercial center requires some 20,000 square meters of land, with a sales surface of over 4,000 sqm and over 200 parking spaces.
Kaufland came to Romania at the end of October 2005, when it opened its first store in the Bucur-Obor area of Bucharest. One year later, Kaufland Romania posted losses worth €10.8 million, followed in 2007 by €1.6 million in profit, and a 162 percent rise in business, with sales worth €641.6 million, compared to €232 million in 2006.
