Auchan: We’ll double the number of hypermarkets in three years

Auchan, the hypermarket network, wants to double the number of stores over the next three years to a total of 14, following investments put at 140 million euros, despite consumer spending decline.

The takeover of the local network by French group Auchan, a deal conducted at the end of 2008, therefore maintains the growth pace on a market which has seen consumer spending decline by as much as 20% this year. In the past three years, when local retail had been growing at an annual pace of over 15%, Auchan Romania had opened seven hypermarkets in all, with the company controlled by a group of foreign investors, most of whom former managers of Cora network, at the time.

"Our goal is to double the number of stores in Romania in three years. We don't have other contracts signed for new projects except the one for the Polus Center Constanta mall," said Patrick Espasa, Auchan Romania's general manager.

Auchan is the first player on the hypermarket segment to announce it will keep expanding at the same pace in the coming years.

After taking over the local network, Auchan group changed the development strategy, so that the French will now prefer space they own to rented space.

"They also told us that their strategy was to become the owners of the space where they operate, but we are not in the position to sell," said Iulian Dascalu, owner of Iulius Mall shopping centres, where Auchan operates three of its seven stores in Romania - Cluj, Suceava and Timisoara.

The expansion of the network to 7 new locations could take Auchan Romania's business to more than 700 million euros in 2012, compared with 278 million euros derived from six hypermarkets in 2008.