Money Buzz! Europa

Category: Retail

  • LC Waikiki opened store no 1000 in Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine

    LC Waikiki opened store no 1000 in Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine

    • LC Waikiki, a Turkish fashion retailer, opened its 1000th store in Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine.
    • First international investment was initiated in Romania, in 2009.
    • Sore no 1000 is located in Kyiv River Mall.

    LC Waikiki has 35 stores and 1000 employees in 18 cities in Ukraine. The new two-storied store in River Mall will be the largest store in the country with its place of 1.880 square meters. 40 employees will be employed in the store, of which the investment cost reaches 1 million USD.

    LC Waikiki Chairman of the Board Vahap Küçük said, “When we first launched our brand, we identified our mission as “Everyone deserves to dress well”. We have set the goal of bringing affordable fashion beyond our country borders by bringing it together with various cultures in different markets. We are committed to providing to our customers from all age groups with products that are suitable for the style and budget and that are manufactured in accordance with the clothes safety rules. We determined the vision of the LC Waikiki brand in 2023 as “Being one of the three most successful fashion retailers in Europe.”

    LC Waikiki to expand in South America

    Küçük stated, “In August, we will open our first store in South America, Peru so that we will be entering a new continent. We are going to enter new countries such as Zambia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Angola and Senegal in Africa; Hungary in Europe and Mongolia and Turkmenistan in Asia. We will enter the 4th continent with South America in 2020. With 9 new countries, we are going to open a total of 130 new stores, 15 stores in Turkey and 115 stores abroad. Thus, we aim to operate in 56 countries on 4 continents by 2020 and reach the number of 1125 stores”.

  • Retail sale in non-specialized stores sector – positive evolution of revenues

    Retail sale in non-specialized stores sector – positive evolution of revenues

    • In Bucharest-Ilfov region, retirees spent the most on food and drinks in 2018;
    • The level of indebtedness in the sector of 61% is decreasing compared to the previous years;
    • The coverage degree of short-term debt through net cash increased from 9% in 2014, to 22% in 2018;
    • The average duration of receivables (DSO) is lower compared to the nationally reported threshold;
    • More than half of the companies (55%) registered a net loss at the end of 2018, and 21% of them had a loss of more than -20%;
    • Around 44% of the companies analyzed have a sub-unit liquidity (current assets do not cover current debts);
    • The consolidated net result at sectorial level decreased from 2.8% in 2017, to 2.4% in 2018.

    A new study conducted by Coface Romania on the sector of “Retail sale in non-specialised stores with food, beverages or tobacco predominating” (NACE 4711) indicates a positive evolution of revenues in 2018, which increased with approximately 8% compared to 2017, with a slightly lower profitability.

    The study aggregated the data of 42.051 companies that submitted their financial situation for 2018 (as of September 2019) and generated a consolidated turnover of RON 71.96 billion. The weight of the cumulative market share held by the most important 10 players is 61%, which indicates a medium to high degree of concentration.

    The share in the total turnover of the top 10% companies in the sector remained at a high level (89.1% in 2014, in 2018 reaching the value of 89.4%). Thus, the sector is highly polarized, with some large companies generating a high share in the turnover and many small companies contributing less to the total revenues.

    The companies operating in this sector registered a current liquidity of 0.94 during 2018, the working capital being exposed to negative shocks, in a context of volatility (lower revenues or non-collection of receivables). The average duration of debt collection in the analyzed sector decreased from 29 days, the level registered in 2014, to 17 days in 2018, while the national level for the same period decreased from 104 days to 90 days.

    The largest number of companies operating in this sector are located in Bucharest ~ 9% of the total, generating the highest turnover ~ RON 35 billion (49% of the total). After Bucharest, Timiș and Ilfov contribute with 9%, respectively 8% in the total turnover and 3% in the number of companies.

  • Mars Retail Group, expansion plans for M&M’S store in Berlin

    Mars Retail Group, expansion plans for M&M’S store in Berlin

    • Over the next two years, Mars Retail Group will be opening doors to three new retail locations;
    • These include Disney Springs in Orlando, Fla., Mall of America in Minneapolis, Minn. and the first M&M’S store in continental Europe in Berlin, Germany.

    The Berlin store will open in early 2021 and be the first M&M’S experiential store in continental Europe.

    Located on one of the most famous avenues in Berlin on Kurfürstendamm in City West, the city’s premiere shopping avenue, the decor will be inspired by the local art and beauty of Berlin.

    “Our aspiration will always be to bring the best of the M&M’S Brand experience to our consumers in each retail location,” said Patrick McIntyre, Director of Global Retail at Mars Retail Group. “Our new stores are advancing in design and experience to create a true connection and commitment to place alongside exciting digital and analog moments. We are bringing the brand to life in an immersive way.”

    What is Kurfürstendamm

    At the heart of City West, Kurfürstendamm is Berlin’s most renowned and popular shopping mile. The boulevard is known worldwide for its luxury shops with flagship stores of high-end fashion labels, shops of international brands as well as excellent restaurants, cafes and bars.

    Because of Kurfürstendamm’s long tradition as a shopping and strolling mile, old and new architecture merge almost seamlessly.

    The 3.5-kilometer-long boulevard extends from Breitscheidplatz with the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church to Rathenauplatz, where the villas and mansions of Grunewald can be found.

  • Nippon Express merges three group companies in Italy

    Nippon Express merges three group companies in Italy

    Three Nippon Express Group companies in Italy, Nippon Express Italia Srl, a Milan-based Italian subsidiary of the main company, Franco Vago SpA and Traconf Srl, were merged to form Nippon Express Italia SpA (Head Office: Florence; President: Arnaldo Vivoli) on January 1, 2020.

    In 2013, the company acquired Franco Vago, which is engaged in apparel-related forwarding operations primarily for luxury fashion brands in Italy, and in 2018 it acquired Tranconf, which is involved in warehouse storage, distribution and other services connected with fashion and lifestyle in Italy and the rest of Europe as well as the U.S. and China.

    The merger aims to accelerate and maximize synergy in sales and operations in one fell swoop and achieve dramatic growth, to step up efforts in the high-fashion sector, a priority industry in the company corporate strategy, and to make the new company a leading provider of logistics services to the fashion logistics sector.

    The merger makes the Italian Nippon subsidiary the largest group company in Europe and the second largest overseas subsidiary after the one in USA.

  • Domino’s Pizza opens first store in the Czech Republic

    Domino’s Pizza opens first store in the Czech Republic

    Domino’s Pizza is opens its first store in the Czech Republic. Residents of Brno can now enjoy hot, made-to-order pizza in-store or delivered to their doorstep by Domino’s, through a partnership with master franchisee Daufood Czech Republic S.R.O.

    “I am so proud of the team that helped bring the global Domino’s brand to the Czech Republic,” said Jose Marti, chief executive officer of Daufood. “We look forward to sharing our delicious products, excellent customer service and prompt delivery with the citizens of Brno.”

    The first location is in the Vinohrady area of Brno, and features the new pizza theater design, a refreshing and inviting interior, stylish seating, as well as a front row seat to watch all the action of pizza-making. A second location will be opening in Brno’s city center, with additional locations planned for next year.

    “Establishing ourselves in the Czech Republic provides an excellent opportunity for our brand to continue its global momentum,” said Joe Jordan, Domino’s executive vice president of international. “With a terrific, proven master franchisee like Daufood, we are confident that Domino’s will be able to establish itself as the pizza delivery brand of choice in Brno.”

    Domino’s now operates in more than 85 markets worldwide, with more than half of its global retail sales coming from international stores.

  • World Class Romania will open a fitness club in Sema Parc

    River Development, the company that manages and develops Sema Parc real-estate project, announces a new lease contract with World Class Romania.

    The new World Class fitness club that will open at the end of February 2020 will have a surface of 1.355 square meters and will provide the complex’ employees premium facilities and state-of-the-art sports equipment.

    Sema Parc, the largest urban regeneration project in Bucharest, is a mixed real-estate project that aims at covering the full range of functions and facilities specific to modern life. In this context, the partnership with World Class Romania represents an important step in extending this circuit of related facilities, in addition to the existing ones.

    “The objective of the World Class health & fitness network is to offer more and more Romanians the chance to choose an active and healthy lifestyle through sports, health and fitness. This objective is again materialized by the opening of a new club: World Class Sema Parc, in a strategically chosen location, in the immediate proximity of important office buildings. This is just one of the new openings that we have planned for the near future. The expansion of the World Class network will continue and we hope that this will bring a change in the lifestyle of the Romanians and will transform the #BeHealthy Movement for More Movement launched by World Class into a National Movement.”, said Kent Orrgren, CEO World Class.

    The unique location of the new World Class club was strategically chosen, as Sema Parc is located in a highly accessible area, within Bucharest’s latest business district – the Central-Western pole, 10 minutes from the city center and 200 m from Petrache Poenaru subway station, being one of the most representative business parks in Bucharest.

    Currently, two new class A office buildings with an overall GLA of over 31,500 sqm are under development being estimated for delivery in Q2 2021.

    Over the past three years, Sema Parc has been engaged in developing three class A office buildings with a total of 38.000 sqm GLA. The first two buildings (Bruxelles and Paris, having a cumulated surface of 23,500 sqm) were already completed and the third one (Berlin – 14,817 sqm) recently delivered in Q3 2019.  

  • Cushman & Wakefield Echinox takes over the Colosseum Mall

    The Asset Services department of the real estate consulting company Cushman & Wakefield Echinox has taken over the administration of the Colosseum shopping center since October 1st, thus expanding its portfolio in Bucharest with a project in full expansion.

    Opened in 2011, Colosseum represents the most important shopping destination in the northwest of the Capital, a developing area both in terms of the subway infrastructure and the residential segment, and regarding the premises for the development of the office sector.

    As a result of the expansion, whose inauguration is scheduled next year, Colosseum shopping center will reach a rentable area of ​​approximately 54,500 square meters.

    The new development project includes local and international brands, such as New Yorker, Colin’s, CCC, Noriel, DM Drogerie Markt, Gregory’s, Diverta, Coffee Ritazza, as well as 60 shops, restaurants, cafes and leisure area.

    In addition to the existing commercial offer that includes Carrefour, Leroy Merlin, Altex, JYSK, LC Waikiki, Sport Vision and Pepco, the new project will also benefit of a multiplex cinema operated by Happy Cinema, as well as a World Class fitness center.

    Mihaela Petruescu, Head of Asset Services, Cushman & Wakefield Echinox: “The integrated services offered, the vast experience and the dedication of the leasing and property management teams work very well together, thus this new mandate of the Colosseum project once again confirms the confidence given to us by the developers.”

    The Colosseum thus becomes the third commercial center in Bucharest under the administration of Cushman & Wakefield Echinox, along with Carrefour Orhideea and Penny Retail Park Fundeni.

    At the same time, since the beginning of the year, three office buildings from Bucharest, namely Ethos House, Eminescu Office and One Victoriei, have entered the Asset Management portfolio of the company.

  • Sonae Sierra has achieved a 5 Star Rating in the 2019 GRESB Benchmark

    Sonae Sierra has achieved a GRESB 5 Star Rating in the 2019 GRESB Real Estate Assessment, with a Green Star status for the 9th year in a row. This is the highest GRESB Rating and a recognition for being an industry leader.

    Each year GRESB assesses and benchmarks the environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance of real assets worldwide and monitors the sector’s progress towards global sustainability goals. GRESB Assessments are guided by what investors and the industry consider to be material issues in the sustainability performance of real asset investments and are aligned with international reporting frameworks such as GRI and PRI.

    „We can’t solve global problems without a global benchmark to show us where we stand and how far we need to go. That’s why we are pleased to announce another increase in GRESB’s benchmark coverage and congratulate all 1,505 companies, funds and assets that reported on their ESG performance this year,” says Sander Paul van Tongeren, Co-Founder and Managing Director at GRESB.

    „You are the leaders of this movement and it’s your commitment to ESG integration and reporting that is paving the way for a more sustainable real asset industry.” says Sander Paul van Tongeren, Managing Director at GRESB.

    Pedro Caupers, Investment and Asset Management Executive Director at Sonae Sierra says „the recognition of Sierra Fund as one of the most sustainable worldwide investment vehicles proves that our commitment to sustainability bears fruit in the most tangible way, placing us at the forefront of other equally committed players in the real estate market. All in all, through sustainability we are consistently creating value to both our clients and our communities”.

  • ParkLake Bucharest celebrates 3 years serving local community

    ParkLake, a Sonae Sierra shopping centre, celebrates three years of operation this September. Rapidly after opening, ParkLake became more than shopping to its community, by offering innovative experiences and combining the adjacent park with its retail and services.

    In 2018, ParkLake opened the doors for a new Passport Office in Bucharest in a 500 m2 space with 17 service desks.

    With its opening, ParkLake also created a new space linking the park, with seasonal sports, large events and entertainment activities. To expand the experience of the park and support its themed architecture and landscape, more than 250 new trees were planted, linking the shopping centre to the park. Inside the centre, you can also find open-air children playgrounds, and a large atrium for seasonal events. This is still unique in the city and places the community at the centre of ParkLake’s activity.

    During the construction ParkLake has had between 500 to 2.000 workers on site along the different phases of development, and additionally it created approximately 2.000 new direct jobs after the opening, for its daily operations.

    ParkLake is the first shopping centre in Romania to receive an ICSC recognition for best large centre development. The ICSC award recognises the outstanding quality of ParkLake’s retail space of 70,000m2 GLA, with more than 200 shops, including 23 restaurants, a multiplex cinema and underground parking for up to 2,600 cars. It is the most awarded Centre in Romania, having received other prestigious national and regional awards.

    „Three years after the opening of ParkLake in Bucharest, we are happy to see that our efforts to offer visitors an impressive shopping experience are still a success. Every year we look to provide the most thrilling international trends in the sector and build a comfortable leisure and social destination for the whole community”, states Catalin Cucian, ParkLake Shopping Centre Manager.

  • German retailer Marc O’Polo opens its first mono-brand store in Romania

    Marc O’Polo fashion brand, present in over 2,000 stores in 39 countries, opens its first mono-brand store in Romania in Bucharest Mall, a transaction brokered by the Cushman & Wakefield Echinox real estate consulting company.

    Marc O’Polo is a well-known brand in Romania, being listed in Peek & Cloppenburg stores, and its direct entry through a mono-brand store is a vote of confidence for the local retail market.

    In May 2019, the company owned 102 stores, while another 226 mono-brand units are operated via franchise agreements. In addition, the brand has gained notoriety through its partners who operate shop-in-store (782 units) and multi-brand (1,004 units) concepts.

    For the first store in Romania the brand has chosen a space with an area of ​​152 square meters located at the ground floor of Bucharest Mall, the first modern shopping center in Romania, which was opened 20 years ago.

    Bogdan Marcu, Partner, Retail Agency: “Due to the significant developments and growth in recent years, the local fashion market continues to attract the attention of international retailers. Marc O’Polo is a premium brand, with a good reputation at the local level, which addresses to consumers that appreciate good fabrics and a clean contemporary casual style. We are confident that the brand will quickly be embraced by the public and will find its place in the modern retail landscape in Bucharest and the main cities in the country. ”

    Headquartered in Stephanskirchen in the area of Munich, Germany, Marc O’Polo has around 1,800 employees and recorded a turnover of 472 million euros in the financial year which ended at May 31, 2019. The brand is present in both the western markets, as well as in Central and Eastern Europe and China.

  • Inditex: new records for revenues, profits and cash în H1 2019

    Inditex posted record levels of net sales, profits and cash for a first half. Net sales topped €12.82 billion for the first time, year-on-year growth of 7%. Net profit hit a new milestone of €1.55 billion, up 10% year-on-year and net cash increased by 13% to €6.73 billion, the highest level ever.

    Inditex net sales increased by 7% in the first half of 2019 (1 February – 31 July), topping €12.82 billion for the first time. In local currencies, sales growth was 7%.

    The solid business performance drove first-half net profit to €1.55 billion, reflecting year-on-year growth of 10% (1H18: €1.41 billion). This figure includes the impact of the new lease accounting standard, IFRS 16, without which profit growth would have been 7%.

    The group maintained its strong cash generation: the net cash position increased by 13% to a record €6.73 billion.

    Inditex’s Executive Chairman, Pablo Isla, underscored the „strong first half performance reflected in these figures, with like-for-like growth across all brands and geographies. The investments we have made in the stores as well as in logistics and technology have been key elements in the development of our customer focused integrated online and offline store platform”.

    Stores and online sales in local currencies increased 8% between 1st August and 8th September. Management estimates a sales growth of 4%-6% in FY2019.

    Highlights for the first half of the year

    During the first half of 2019, zara.com introduced its online platform in Brazil, the United Arab Emirates, Lebanon, Egypt, Morocco, Indonesia, Serbia and Israel. In August, Zara inaugurated its online platform in Qatar, Kuwait, Jordan, Bahrain and Oman.

    It is also due to launch the platform in South Africa (18 September), the Ukraine, Colombia and the Philippines during the third quarter.

    In all, at the July close, the group had 7.420 stores in 96 markets and the integrated online platform was available in 62 of those. The online stores of Zara, Zara Home, Massimo Dutti, Pull&Bear, Stradivarius, Oysho and Uterqüe are also available in an additional 106 markets without physical stores, with Bershka scheduled to follow suit this September.

    This digitally-driven investment plan is being complemented by the constant upgrading and modernisation of the group’s logistics facilities. The construction work on the new digital production building to provide photography for zara.com in Arteixo (La Coruña, Spain) continues to make good progress and work has also begun on expanding the group’s technological and data processing capacity in A Laracha (La Coruña, Spain).

    Meanwhile, the construction and commissioning work at the logistics connection hub in Lelystad (Netherlands) remains on track. The new platform has successfully completed the tests performed in recent months and will be partially commissioned during the second half, ahead of schedule; it will be fully operational in 2020.

    New Zara stores in iconic flagship locations

    Zara opened stores in Hudson Yards (New York, US), Cannes (France), the Time World Mall (Dajeon, Korea), Rome (Italy), Warsaw (Poland) – as Pull&Bear, Massimo Dutti, Bershka, Stradivarius, Oysho and Zara Home.

    More recently, Zara has inaugurated a new store in Pamplona (Spain) in an emblematic building which the brand has brought back to life for the city.

    Tomorrow (12 September), Zara will open its expanded store in Dubai Mall, the largest single-storey Zara store in the world, with a floor space of over 5,000 square metres that will house the full women’s, men’s and kids collections.

    Also tomorrow, the expanded Zara store on calle Preciados, one of the busiest shopping streets in Madrid, will reopen. The store has a floor space of over 4,000 square metres over six floors, in which Zara will unveil its latest image and newest customer experience-enhancing technology.

  • 2019 will bring 900.000 square meters of new modern spaces to the market

    The real estate development activity could double in 2019 compared to 2018, if all the projects scheduled for this year will be completed, the data shows JLL Bucharest City Report.

    According to the data announced by the developers, over 900,000 square meters of modern spaces would be completed this year, of which about half represent industrial and logistics projects.

    The stock of industrial and logistics in Romania will thus rise to 4.2 – 4.25 million sqm, an increase of over 10% compared to 2018. At mid-year, the stock exceeded the threshold of 4 million sqm, of which over 2 million square meters, is in Bucharest.

    The development activity in this sector is encouraged by the evolution of the demand of the last three years, between 2016 and June 2019 being contracted over 1.7 million square meters of industrial and logistics spaces. For comparison, between 2011 and 2015, about 1.2 million square meters of industrial and logistic spaces were rented in Romania.

    For the whole of 2019, approximately 400,000 square meters of industrial and logistic spaces are expected to be completed. However, considering that 180,700 square meters have already been delivered in the first half of the year and almost 230,000 square meters are under construction, the deliveries will be more than 400,000 square meters initially estimated.

    Due to the strong demand and the very low weight of speculative projects, the unemployment rate remained at 6%.

    Double deliveries on Bucharest office market

    On the Bucharest office market, 2019 will be a record year in terms of new deliveries, the announced volume being 333,500 sqm, more than double the projects completed in 2018.

    Although there were strong new deliveries both in Q2 and Q1 vacancy decreased slightly form roughly 8 in Q 1 to 7.5% at the end of Q2. This is because by the time the buildings were delivered they had 80% to 90% occupancy, or even 100% in some cases, such as Renault Bucharest Connected and The Mark. Therefore, the new buildings did not add up much to the overall vacancy rate.

    On the other hand, demand was also strong during the first half and there were almost no major relocations in the market during this period, except for Renault, who moved from Pipera North to the western part of the city in the new project Renault Bucharest Connected, build on demand.

    The office stock in Bucharest was estimated at over 2.84 million sqm at the end of June, and by the end of the year it will approach the threshold of 3 million square meters.

    Over 150,000 sqm is expected to be delivered in H2. Therefore, the vacancy rate might slightly increase to around 8%. However, even though at the end of Q2 the projects under construction, to be delivered in H2 had a pre-lease rate of roughly 40% on average, with significant differences from case to case, considering that there are several large transactions pending, if those will be concluded in time, the occupancy rate will also go much higher by the time the buildings will be completed. Therefore, new deliveries are not expected to add much to the overall vacancy rate in H2.

    The lack of new retail projects will be compensated for in the second part of the year

    Following the same trend as in Q 1 there were no new major shopping centers or retail parks delivered in Q2 2019. However, during the period, NEPI Rockcastle finished the new 10,000 sqm expansion of Shopping City Sibiu

    Almost all major deliveries for 2019 will concentrate in the second half, with close to 166,000 sqm expected to be completed, compensating for the lack of new projects during the first half of the year.

    2019 will be characterized by a considerable number of extensions and to a lesser extent by new projects.

    The largest new project expected to be delivered by the end of this year is Festival Shopping Center in Sibiu. The 42.200 sqm shopping center is developed by NEPI Rockcastle, the largest shopping center developer and owner in Romania. In Bucharest, there are no new shopping centers to be delivered this year.