Only ten actors are left on the market today, five less than there were a decade ago. The number will further decline, since some are seen as too small to be able to cope, while the market is not good for some of them, and others may see Romania as a non-strategic market.
The smallest actor on the market at the moment is Cora, a chain that numbers only 11 hypermarkets. The retailer is too small to survive on a market where its direct competitors have three to 11 times more hypermarkets. A potential sale of Cora was first rumored two or three years ago when the retailer halted local expansion. Information about a potential sale has now resurfaced as the retailer is looking for a direction internationally. The sale of Cora would mean consolidation of the position of the three other hypermarket operators left, since Real stores were sold, too.
Another deal might involve the Mega Image chain. Talk about a potential sale surfaced after owner Delhaize merged with Dutch-held Ahold, creating a retail giant. The group did not announce plans for Romania, but if the local market is not seen as strategic, a sale might be in order and Auchan would be in pole position to buy the operations headed towards EUR1 billion sales a year.
(English version by Loredana Fratila-Cristescu)