Retailer Annabella has 85 stores in Valcea, Arges and Olt Counties, 15 of which inaugurated this year alone and plans to continue expansion.
“Annabella store chain currently numbers 85 stores but we plan to end the financial year with 90 stores,” says Dorina Mutu, who established the business together with her husband more than 25 years ago.
Annabella is the most powerful entrepreneurial grocery retail business in Romania, having posted RON317.5 million sales last year, an increase of almost 8% on 2018. It is also one of the local retail actors with the largest networks.
“We opened eight stores, remodeled two and closed one in 2019. So far this year we’ve opened 15 stores, remodeled five and closed only one.”
The entrepreneur recalls the story of Annabella started four years after the fall of the communist regime in Romania, with a store where two people (Dorina and Dan Mutu) sold fruit and vegetables and had bold ambitions.
“We are now at the second generation of Annabella employees; we’ve got parents working in the company since 1994 and their kids started there in the last few years. We want the companies in the Arabella group to remain 100% Romanian-owned companies, born and raised here in Romania.”
(English version by Loredana Fratila-Cristescu)