Emperia Holding S.A., one of the largest Polish FMCG retail and wholesale trading groups, reported PLN 1.3 billion in revenues in the first quarter of 2008, up by 21.5 percent on the same period last year.
Net profit of PLN 18.0 million also marked a 7.8 percent improvement on the net profit generated by Emperia in the first quarter of 2007.
Emperia Holding has been consistently pursuing the consolidation of the retail and wholesale FMCG market in Poland. Following the 2006 takeover of the BOS Group and 10 wholesale and retail companies in 2007, the first quarter of 2008 saw the incorporation of another two companies, namely Lewiatan Dolny Śląsk in Zgorzelec and Lewiatan Zachód in Szczecin, in April 2008 joined by Lewiatan Orbita in Olsztyn. The three acquired companies operate franchise chains of 381 retail outlets in aggregate.
In addition to the consolidation efforts, Emperia Holding continued the Group’s organic growth. A Distribution Centre in Błonie of some 13 thousand sq. m was launched, six Stokrotka supermarkets were opened, and the number of compact supermarkets increased by 79 outlets.
In the area of the wholesale business, the integration of wholesale companies into a single business entity, limited liability company Tradis Sp. z o.o. in Lublin kicked off. The first stage involved changing the company’s business name from Eldorado Sp. z o.o. to Tradis Sp. z o.o. In the area of the retail business, the efforts aimed at unifying the retail outlet format continued.
“The consistent organic growth and active consolidation efforts help Emperia Holding strengthen its leadership in the Polish FMCG market, and the robust financial performance—despite high costs of restructuring and rapid development—confirm our belief that we have chosen the right strategy to attain our ambitious goals in both the current year and the years ahead,” said Artur Kawa, Chairman of Management Board, Emperia Holding.
Company Background Information:
Emperia Holding is ranked seventh among the largest trading businesses in Poland, 37th on the Rzeczpospolita daily 500 List and 30th on Polityka’s Five Hundred list for 2007. The company has been placed 15th on the Rzeczpospolita Europe 500 List of the largest trading companies in Central and Eastern Europe. Gazeta Giełdy Parkiet stock exchange daily ranks Emperia second among the most valuable companies quoted on the Stock Exchange in Warsaw, Emperia being also the leader of the Trade and Consumption sector. Newsweek weekly lists Emperia among the 100 most valuable Polish companies.
The operations of Emperia Holding S.A. fall into two business lines: retail and wholesale, boasting a workforce of over 11,000 between them.
The retail business comprises:
· A chain of supermarkets:
Stokrotka – 120 supermarkets, including 3 Stokrotka Premium deli supermarkets
· Chains of compact supermarkets:
Groszek – 709 supermarkets
Milea – 6 supermarkets
Społem Tychy – 31 supermarkets
Jaskółka – 27 supermarkets
Centrum – 13 supermarkets
Maro Markety – 18 supermarkets
Euro Sklepy – 281 supermarkets
Lewiatan Podlasie - 149 supermarkets
Lewiatan Dolny Śląsk – 89 supermarkets
Lewiatan Zachód – 206 supermarkets
Lewiatan Orbita – 86 supermarkets
The wholesale business comprises 9 subsidiaries (Tradis, BOS, DLS, Sygel-Jool, DEF, Express Podlaski, Sydo, Alpaga-Xema, and an importing and exporting arm, Arsenal) whose operations fall into geographical regions covering the entire Poland. The wholesale subsidiaries own in aggregate 68 wholesale branches, including 58 cash&carry locations, of the total area of some 265,000 sq. m. The integration of Emperia’s selected wholesale subsidiaries into a single business entity, to operate under the name of Tradis, is under way.