Praktiker Romania sees sales go down by 21.8 percent in 2010

Praktiker Romania has reported net sales worth EUR 193.6 million in 2010, 21.8 percent less against the previous year, due to the general economic context and an overall decline in the DIY market.

“In the two countries where we generate the highest sales, Greece and Romania, extensive fiscal measures including significant increases in value added tax meant that the available income and purchasing power of private households declined dramatically – with a corresponding impact on our sales and earnings,” reads the company’s annual report.

Cutting costs was priority for the German retailer in 2010 and in Romania this meant that personnel expenses were reduced by unpaid holiday.

Praktiker has a 6.4 percent market share in Romania and its main competitors are Dedeman (6.5 percent), Bricostore (4.6 percent) and Baumax (2.9 percent), according to the retailer’s data.

Unlike the situation in Greece and Romania, the Praktiker Group announced satisfactory growth in Turkey and Poland, and a clear turnaround in its business in Hungary in the second half of the year. In Ukraine it reported an “impressive” double-digit sales growth following a sharp downturn in the previous year.

The Praktiker Group saw sales go down by 5.9 percent to EUR 3.448 billion in 2010 while operating earnings amounted to EUR 35.3 million. The retailer opened three units last year outside of Germany, one of which is located in Romania, in Botosani. Overall, the Praktiker Group operated a network of 438 stores at the end of 2010, one less compared to the previous year. Out of this, 331 stores are located in Germany. In Romania it has 27 stores. The Praktiker Group is also present in Albania, Bulgaria, Greece, Luxembourg, Poland, Turkey, Ukraine and Turkey.

Simona Bazavan