For Mega Image, this would not be the first takeover of domestic stores, as the company operates own units in spaces previously held by Romanian chains such as Gulliver or Luca.
Sorin Minea, Angst shareholder, denies information on the sale, stating that at the moment he signs a contract he will make the information public. Mega Image representatives did not answer ZF’s request for information by edition close.
The 22 stores opened under Angst brand have areas of 100-200 square meters, similar with those of Mega Image proximity stores opened under the Shop&Go brand. Belgium-held Mega Image is the largest food store chain in Romania with over 300 supermarkets and proximity stores.
At present, according to its own website, 22 stores are opened under Angst brand, with 18 in Bucharest, two in Buftea and one in Otopeni and Sinaia each. According to market sources, the best units of the chain are those of Obor and Amzei.
Of the total 22 units, just seven are owned by Angst, with the rest operating in rented spaces. Thus, the agreement with Mega Image or another retail network is likely to entail entering the franchise system of the respective chain or a takeover by the latter of all the spaces where Angst stores are opened for units to be opened under other brands.
Angst’s core activity is meat processing, with the company’s products being present both in its own stores and in several modern and traditional retail networks. The company has been present in Romania since the early ‘90s and the plant of Buftea and the first store were opened in 1993. In parallel, Angst developed a store network selling its own products, as well as foodstuffs, personal and home care products.
Angst Ro company, which managed until late 2013 both the retail and production operations, in 2013 generated revenue of 163.6 million lei (EUR37 million), almost 12% below the 2012 level. However, the company halved its losses to RON3.3 million (EUR700,000). Last November, the group’s shareholders set up a new company, Angst Retail, which manages the store chain. The move is likely to facilitate an agreement between Angst and another retail chain.
Should the company decide to enter a partnership system, this would be the second agreement of this type in the past three years. In late 2011, Carrefour announced it signed a partnership with Angst. This May, Angst announced it exited the partnership. At that moment, Sorin Minea said he did not plan to enter another franchise.
He also stated the market was going through a highly challenging period, with consumption giving no signs of a revival, so that Angst’s purpose was to focus on what it could do best.
(English version by Catalina Apostoiu)