“Demand was very high. We did not have enough units to meet it. We did not make any calculations, but considering there were companies that asked for 100 units at a time and adding sales to individuals, deliveries revolved around several thousand units,” Dora Popeneciu, general manager of iStyle Romania, told ZF.
The company operates a three-store network and posted revenue of some EUR10 million in 2013.
The retail sector generates 40% of the company’s revenue, with the rest coming from corporate deliveries. Retail sales advanced by 15% last year, despite the weak purchasing power in Romania.
In September, iStyle Romania split its retail activities from the B2B ones in a bid to better develop each segment. Thus, the retail side is operated by iStyle Retail and the parent company became iStyle Professional Services to secure the development of partnerships with companies.
For 2015, iStyle Romania plans to increase sales by at least 15%, considering it is now in talks to open three new stores, both in and outside Bucharest. Currently, iStyle network includes two stores in Bucharest malls AFI Cotroceni and Baneasa Shopping Mall and one in Cluj-Napoca, in Polus Center.
(English version by Catalina Apostoiu)