Expansion of large trade chains

Around 45 percent of the daily consumer goods trade in Romania is made throughout the biggest trade chains, according to merchandisers.

Hypermarket, supermarket, discount shops are words that Romanian shoppers use every day.

More than 500 new shops have been opened this year alone, and the expansion of some of the biggest trade chains continues.

We are referring to thousand square metres, selling space for each shop, thousands and even ten thousands visitors, most of them clients, and a total turnover of billions every year.

Mostly in the big cities, but not only, opening a new supermarket is truly an event for the community.

The reductions and promotional prices offered at the opening make people queue for hours and crowd at the entrance.

Even if sales have gone down during 2007-2008, the biggest trade chains continue to open new shops.

“There is a struggle for the market share, everyone is trying to increase the number of shops, so that they could have a competition advantage over their contractors, to have as many clients as possible taking into account the fact that the surface of Romania is quite large, the roads quite long so that if we are in a crisis situation, unfortunately there is no other change for the big networks than to expand, even if the results are not those from 2007 or 2008 and even if the numbers are in a continuous decreasing”, the Vice President of the Association of Large Trade Chains of Romania, Alexandru Vlad, explained.

Around 45 percent of the daily consumer goods trade in Romania is made throughout the biggest trade chains.

Their turnout is almost 5 billion euros per year, but most of the trade chains recorded losses last year.

According to a recent study carried out in the spring by the ISRA Center Marketing Research, the clients in the urban environment buy more bread, fresh fruits, personal care products, fresh vegetables and dairies.

The representatives of the Association of Large Trade Chains of Romania claims that the average client spends between 50 and 300 lei depending on the size of the shop.

According to the National Institute of Statistics, more than 40 percent of the monthly incomes of a family are spent on food and non alcoholic drinks, and 7 percent on cigarettes and alcohol.

Translated by: Violeta Mavrodin
MA Student, MTTLC, Bucharest University