Elmec increases personnel to sustain development

Yannis Lagos, a member of the managing board of Elmec, the domestic importer of Nike, has said he wants Elmec’s number of employees to increase from 700 at the end of 2006 to 850 by June this year, in order to assist the company’s development plans.
“The large increase in personnel is the result of our plans to open a new shopping gallery, at the end of June in the Bucuresti Mall. We’ll need 100 staff just to run the gallery. Also, we are hiring people for other outlets we plan to open,” says Lagos.
Elmec Romania, the domestic branch of the Greek firm Elmec Sport, is currently operating 36 outlets in Romania, 10 of which were opened in 2006. Brands imported for the Romanian market include Nike, Converse, Killah, Miss Sixty, Docker’s, Energie, Polo, Reply and Calvin Klein.
Besides these brands, Elmec Romania also imports fitness equipment produced by TechnoGym and operates the Wellness Club fitness centre in the Plaza Romania mall. According to Lagos, Nike remains the most significant brand for Elmec, with 20 stores exclusively dedicated to its retail.
“Our most important brand is Nike. In the Famous Brands gallery of Plaza Romania, 35% of sales are generated by the Nike and Converse brands (…)”, says Lagos, who is also the human capital director with Elmec.
The company’s strategic development plan for 2007 includes an increase in the number of mono-brand stores. The number of Nike outlets is expected to increase from 58 to 70 outlets in 2008 (including the Romanian, Bulgarian and Greek markets). The Women Secret brand will increase its number of outlets from 5 to 10, whilst two Famous Brands multi-brand galleries are scheduled to open. At present, the company operates 8 Famous Brands stores in Bucharest and seven outlets outside Bucharest.
“For 2007, the most important project for us is the Famous Brands Gallery in the Bucuresti Mall. It is a completely new concept for the Romanian market and is imported from Greece. The retail area will cover 1,500 square metres and will sell all our products in a space fitted out in line with each brand’s specific requirements,” added Lagos.
In 2002, the company acquired a 6,000 square metre building in the centre of Bucharest, which is expected to open at the beginning of 2008, as a department store selling footwear, cosmetics and clothing. In late 2008, the company is also due to finalise investments in its 35,000 square metre office building being developed in Otopeni.
The company’s most important real estate investment is the development of a 122,000 square metre shopping centre located in Craiova. Investments for the project are valued at 80 million euros, while the shopping centre will be developed in partnership with the real estate developer Aleonsor.
In 2006 Elmec Romania derived a turnover worth 33.9% accounting for around 20% of the Greek group’s total revenues, more than double the figure registered in 2005.