Russia’s X5 Retail Group opened the first of its new concept Karusel hypermarkets in the city of Sergiyev Posad northeast of Moscow on Friday .
The store possesses sales space of more than 4,000 square metres. It has an offering of 20,500 SKUs, with approximately 20% of the assortment sourced locally from the Moscow area.
In an effort to improve product quality, the company said that it invested in a ‘full-fledged’ cold chain.
The hypermarket has been implemented with four temperature circuits to suit categories in need of specific temperatures (meat, fish, fruit and vegetables, and in-house products).
Shopping Space Layout
While this is the 14th Karusel hypermarket in the region, the revamped format displays revised product offering and pricing strategies, as well as updating the corporate ‘style’ and the interior layout of the hypermarket.
The main focus of the revamp is the shopping space layout of each store, including ease of navigation. Shoppers can avail of 'quick and easy planning' for their in-store route and shopping list.
Shelving displays bargain prices, and special product offers signalling categories such as the best new arrivals, local produce, and healthy food items, among others.
There is also a broader range of in-house production options, differing per store and depending on local demand. For example, the hypermarket in Sergiyev Posad has 200 items made in-house, including desserts such as eclairs and tarts, and hot bread baked hourly. The hypermarket also has an in-store cafe for a ‘short gastronomic break’.
In the fourth quarter of 2017, Karusel hypermarkets accounted for 7% of total group net retail sales.
For more information on Russia's largest retail group read our exclusive A-Z of Retail: X is for X5.
© 2018 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Karen Henderson. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
