Aldis to gradually give up its own store network

George Naghi, president and majority shareholder of Aldis, says he intends to give up his store network amid the boom of the retail segment on the local market.
“We will gradually give up our stores to other retail networks, as the number of large chain stores will increase irrespective of our plans, with large retail eventually taking over the market that is now held by small stores,” explained George Naghi.
Aldis owns a network comprising 50 stores, of 40-50 square metres, both in Calarasi, where the company’s production facility is located, and in other major cities.
The president of Aldis expects the market’s growth rate to slow down in 2007, with the segments of dry cured salami, meat varieties and fresh meat being the only retail categories expected to grow.
“I don’t see the charcuterie production witnessing any spectacular growth this year, however I do expect to see growth in the slaughter of livestock and the slicing and selling of fresh meat, a segment we are currently developing,” stated the Aldis representative.
The company is expecting around 50% increase on the fresh meat segment, whereas last year this segment accounted for less than 3% of its production.
“Our advantage is that we have our own slaughterhouse, which means the slaughtered livestock can be butchered and sent to stores within 48 hours. Last year was the first year we entered the market of frozen meat, now we have consolidated this segment, we hope it will see an approximately 50% surge,” stated Naghi.
According to the Aldis president, the Romanian consumer’s mind frame has changed over the last few years, and the customer now prefers more expensive, higher quality products.