Astral Impex owners: SPAR business worth 35m euros

Arad-based entrepreneurs Ioan and Floare Cuc, owners of Astral Impex, the fourth largest distributor of consumer goods on the market, will see their SPAR store network reach business worth 35 million euros this year, three times higher against last year, according to network representatives. Astral Impex posted an over 123 million-euro turnover last year. The Cuc family holds the licence for developing the Dutch retail network SPAR in Romania, and plans future investments worth 350 million euros in 250 supermarkets and hypermarkets. The first SPAR store on the Romanian market opened last year, in Arad, with the chain currently totalling 11 stores. In order to finance their retail business, the owners of Astral Impex are working with the American investment fund Morava. According to SPAR Romania representatives, investments to develop the network have reached approximately 24 million euros. The Cucs are noted for their discretion and make limited statements to the press. In its first year, the SPAR network brought its Arad-based investors a net profit of almost one million euros, with a turnover standing at 9.3 million euros, according to 2006 data from the Ministry of Finance.