Russian retailer Magnit is closing in on market leader X5, reporting a bullish full-year performance for 2012 with significantly higher figures across the board. A rash of store openings and higher margins underpinned the success, seeing EBITDA increase by 71.62 per cent and net revenue up 33.6 per cent to RUB 448 billion (roughly €11 billion).
Analysts have branded Magnit the best-performing grocer in Russia, as well as one of Europe’s most profitable, with market share reported to be around 5 per cent. The group expanded its store network by 1,575 outlets during the fiscal year, including 1,057 supermarkets and neighbourhood stores and 36 hypermarkets, bringing its total tally to 6,884 stores.
2012 net income increased by 103.15 per cent, coming in at RUB 24,994.79 million (roughly €621 million) with a 5.26 per cent rise in like-for-like sales.
Magnit’s 126 hypermarkets delivered a stronger performance than its supermarkets and neighbourhood store division with like-for-like growth of 11.43 per cent and 8 per cent, respectively.
CEO Sergey Galitskiy declared the group’s ambition to increase its market share, with a busy 2013 scheduled. “We are already thinking of 2013 and have set a challenging task for ourselves to open over 1,100 convenience stores, over 60 stores of the hypermarket and Magnit family format, and 250 cosmetics stores. We also hope that this year we will launch four distribution centers and buy at least 1,200 trucks,” he said.
Source: www.freshplaza.com