Affichage CEO: Very little left to buy on the market

Affichage Romania, a division of the Swiss group Affichage Holding, ranked 6th worldwide in outdoor advertising, forecasts a 10-15% increase in its business this year and expects to reach 2 million euros for the overall group. The forecast comes after the company acquired Amco and the outdoor division of Amco advertising last year, with an annual business worth over 2 million euros. “We anticipate a 1-15 % increase, in line with the market growth rate,” says Lucian Palaz, CEO of Affichage Romania, and added the company will focus on improving the quality of the billboards, rather than their number (3,500, with 1,200 in Bucharest). In terms of other potential transactions, Palaz believes “currently, there isn’t much left to buy on the market,” considering that Affichage is in search of major players, which could change the hierarchy at the top of the outdoor market ranking – a market valued at over 40 million euros. After it took over Amco, Affichage climbed to the second position in the ranking and outstripped News Outdoor, which is held by the News Corporation group, owned by Australian-American billionaire Rupert Murdoch.