The management of Slovenian grocery retailer Mercator has initiated the process for the sale of a number of its shopping malls in the country, according to Slovenian publication Delo.
The plan, which involves the hiring of two external consultants, foresees the sale and subsequent renting of some of the group's shopping malls, including Šiška - the largest mall in the capital, Ljubljana.
The funds received will be used for the repayment of company debt to creditors, and for investment in a new logistics centre in Ljubljana, which is set to be completed in two years.
Planned Transactions
Speaking to Delo, sales manager Tomislav Čizmić said that the first transactions are expected to be completed at the end of this year or in early 2018, and that Mercator expects to receive about €320 million from the sales.
Čizmić added that Mercator has successful prospects for the future, pointing out that despite the small drop in turnover and sales space in the first nine months of 2017, profitability increased and operations were positive.
He added that this was not only the result of the economic recovery of Slovenia, but also of new business policies implemented by the company.
Mercator is the largest employer in Slovenia and purchases €500 million a year of goods from Slovenian producers.
Earlier this month, the retailer reported that it ended the first nine months of the year with a profit of €9.9 million, compared to a loss of €1.7 million in the previous year.
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Branislav Pekic. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine
