Germanos: We are looking for acquisitions

Germanos, a retailer of GSM phones and accessories is not ruling out the acquisition of similar smaller store networks on the domestic market in order to reach its target of exceeding 200 stores by the yearend, compared with 134 stores in December 2006, said the general manager of Germanos Telecom Romania, Dimitris Blatsios. He did not provide any details on the budget allocated for this year’s network expansion, but did specify that Germanos invested over two million euros in modernising the stores, a process, which began in autumn 2006. Currently, the Germanos network numbers 150 stores, located in over 80 cities. “In Romania, there are over 3,000 stores selling GSM phones and accessories, held by around 100 companies, so a consolidation trend is expected to follow, in line with the EU model. The weaker companies will be absorbed, or will merge with the stronger ones,” added Blatsios. “There are too many stores for the size of the domestic market, therefore the trend is a natural one.”