German company Deichmann, Europe's biggest footwear retailer, which at the end of last year operated 2,185 stores in 13 European markets, will open its first outlets on the domestic market later this year, in Pitesti, Roman and Arad.
"Our development now allows us to embrace organic growth, and Romania is 'on the path to Europe', which is why we consider this market interesting," Ulrich Effing, corporate communications director with Deichmann, told ZF in an interview. Besides Romania, Deichman is also planning to expand onto the markets of Croatia and Sweden.
In Romania, Deichmann intends to enter the market by opening 3 stores simultaneously in August, in Pitesti, Roman and Arad. Rental contracts for retail space have already been signed, and the stores will open under the Deichmann brand.
According to Effing, Deichmann will not open a sales office in Romania at first; however, domestic expansion will be managed by the Vienna subsidiary of the German footwear company.
After an initial strong entrance onto the domestic market, Deichmann is expected to continue expanding further, states Effing. He would not specify the number of domestic stores the company plans to open in the medium term.
However, the developers of domestic shopping centres such as Polus Center, in both Cluj and Constanta, and Cotroceni Park, in Bucharest, have already announced that Deichmann stores are registered as tenants."We are not ruling out the possibility of opening stores in shopping centres, or opening on the main boulevards. We are generally looking for busy areas, with reasonable rents," says Effing.
The Deichmann store concept, which is similar to rival footwear retailer Leonardo, entails the sale of a large selection of footwear and leather goods, along with care accessory products for its merchandise. The Deichmann product range includes sports, casual and fashionable footwear.
The footwear sold by the company is produced in over 40 countries. Deichmann's only involvement is in the design process, rather than production. The top two players on the domestic footwear market, Ara Shoes and Lloyd Shoes, as well as Legero sports footwear producer, all of them controlled by Germany's Ara AG holding, also produce footwear for Deichmann.
"We create our own collections together with our designers and technicians and we work with producers in more than 40 countries. We use a vertical buying strategy, which means we don't use any intermediaries. We directly negotiate with producers, which allows us to offer fashionable, high-quality and affordable products," explains Effing.
On the Romanian market, Deichmann will compete with retailers Leonardo, Benvenuti, Musette and Otter.
Global overview of Deichmann
Will be present in 16 countries by yearend.
Posted a turnover worth 2.71 billion euros in 2006, up 10.5% year-on-year.
Operated 2,185 stores at the end of last year
Announced the opening of three stores in Romania, in Roman, Pitesti and Arad
Holds a market share of 20% in Germany
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