Danish retailer Dagrofa has announced it is to close its Kiwi discount chain in Denmark, as it feels it can 'no longer be turned into a profitable business', the retailer said in a statement.
Dagrofa chief executive Per Thau said that the retailer, which also operates the Meny, Spar, Min Købmand and Let-Køb banners in Denmark, will close Kiwi after "several years of losses", in order to enable the business to "focus on what we do best".
Dagrofa will convert around 30 of its 103 Kiwi outlets to Spar and Meny stores in the coming months, with the remainder of the stores set to close.
Impact Of Closure
The move will reduce Dagrofa's consolidated revenue by around 9%, but Thau added that in Meny and Spar, the group operates chains where there is "progress, potential and earnings. Those forces we are now expanding with some of the closed Kiwi stores."
The store closures will affect around 2,400 employees including shop assistants, warehouse staff and staff in support functions. Around a third of these will continue to work in the converted stores, while Dagrofa has said that it has initiated a 'number of initiatives' to help those made redundant to find work elsewhere.
"The decision to close the Kiwi chain has not been easy to take," said Thau. "The entire organisation has done a tremendous job with the development of Kiwi. But we just have to recognise that it has not managed to really get a foothold in the discount market, which is characterised by fierce competition and lack of earnings."
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine
