The value of the grocery retail market in Romania reached €40 billion in 2017, growing by 12% over the past year, according to an analysis by Euler Hermes Romania.
Profit reports that the top four players - Kaufland, Carrefour, Metro Cash & Carry and Auchan - currently account for 60% of the market.
This year, an additional 230,000 square metres of new commercial space was created in the country, up 40% from 2015.
A record number of new stores were opened (240), with the most active retailer being Profi with 134 stores, followed by Mega Image (60), Lidl (11) and Kaufland (6).
Retail Strategy
In 2017, retailers such as Carrefour and Kaufland stepped up their efforts to identify sustainable and local partnerships with suppliers. In Romania, 85% of products sold in the retail networks are of mixed origin and 15% are local products.
Meanwhile, new regional warehouses have opened to support network expansion. Carrefour and Kaufland plan to expand existing warehouses serving the Bucharest stores, while Profi opened the first logistics centre in Cluj this year.
There is also room for growth in the online grocery market. Carrefour, Metro and Selgros already have online platforms, while Mega Image, Kaufland and Cora entered the e-commerce market in 2017.
© 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
