Murfatlar bets on wine shops for growth

Winemaker Murfatlar owned by Dobronăuțeanu brothers is betting a lot on its own retail chain, which has now reached 25 Crama Murfatlar wine shops, three months and a half from launch, which generated sales of 1.3 million euros.
“We set out to grow by expanding the Crama Murfatlar network to 150 stores by the end of 2011,” said Daniel Negrescu, brand manager of Murfatlar.
Sales through these wine shops account for 4% of Murfatlar’s total business this year, which stood at 33.3 million euros, and are important to the company, because of the wine consumption decline for the second year in a row.
Murfatlar has opened shops in such cities as Bucharest, Constanța, Galați, Brăila, Cluj, Timișoara and Brașov. Sales through its Crama Murfatlar wine shops could reach 10.7 million euros in 2011, that is a quarter of the business. Crama Murfatlar shops are franchises developed in partnership with local entrepreneurs.