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Discount Retail Chain MERE's mother Discount Retail Chain Svetofor is active in Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus and China. Svetofor controls over 1,500 stores opened its first discount stores in Germany and Romania in 2018 and 2019 respectively Lituania and Poland this year under the MERE brand. Svetofor is managed by Russian Torgservis. The owners are the Schneider family (92.5%), Valery Yakovlev (4.5%), Andrey Veykulainen (3%). Torgservis took the ninth place in the ranking of Russian retailers, compiled by InfoLine at the end of 2019 , with around 500 stores opened in 2019 alone. This makes the company one of the fastest growing supermarket chains in the country, right after the market leaders X5 Retail Group and Magnit. Both X5 and Magnit also recently opened a discount store format in Russia. Torgservis revenue in 2019 amounted to a little more than $1.4B (26% more than in 2018). At MERE, the pans, brushes and brooms are in the original carton boxes stacked on top of each other, milk, orange juice and the like are presented on wooden euro pallets. Canned food can be found here on the heavy-duty shelves and pickles come in cardboard boxes instead of jars. There is almost no storage rooms, as almost all delivered products end up in the store. MERE isn't about looks, it's about lightness and savings. Accordingly, their motto is “cheap”. The concept of “daily lowest prices” is causing a stir and attracting savers to its stores. The discounter is often referred to as the Aldi clone of the “Seventies” because of its simple store concept it reminds many people on the early days German Aldi stores. But what some may find simple and tasteless works well for the discounter. When the first German store was opened in Leipzig-Portitz on January 29, 2019, it attracted a lot of attention. The consequence of the cheap prices was an unexpectedly disproportionate run of customers on the store. Due to out-of-stocks, MERE had to close its doors for a short time. As a result, customers felt set-back to the DDR times, when essential food was frequently sold out in supermarkets. No end for MERE? In Germany there are only a few MERE stores so far. These are in Leipzig-Portlitz, Homburg (in Saarland), Zwickau and Halle-Neustadt. Further planned store openings in Dresden and Chemnitz had to be canceled for the time being due to the Corona crisis. In general, however, MERE's expansion plans are very ambitious. At the beginning of 2019, they announced that they would open up to 100 stores in Germany. Further stores are planned in the greater Berlin and Frankfurt areas. Furthermore, MERE will open a new store in Wilhelmshaven on October 1st. Good selected locations should score points The German MERE holding company TS Markt GmbH only selects special locations for its MERE stores. In doing so, they not only look for cities with good locations, it is also primarily investigated whether cheap rents are feasible. For this reason, vacant, abandoned rental space is mainly rented. Every beginning is difficult ... Retail experts saw the market launch of MERE 2019 as a “trial run”, insiders expected the discounter to have little chance. The planned 100 stores by the end of 2021 were also only described as “manageable” by experts. Because there is a lot of pressure in German food retailing that new retailers with few stores can hardly withstand. The extremely cheap concept of MERE was also assessed by the German trade association as having little success chance. One must expect high transportation, rental and personnel costs. Especially in the Munich and Stuttgart regions, you have to calculate rental costs of up to € 19 per square meter per month. These costs then have to be borne by the shoppers. At MERE, the price counts But despite all doubts, the new Russian MERE discount stores in Germany were able to assert themselves quite well at the few opened locations. The concept works and some shoppers have no problem with the missing of shelves. Because it is about the price. We are excited to see how this discounter will develop and realize in Germany and abroad. The chances for a successful German roll-out are certainly there given the extreme shoopers' price sensitivity in Aldi and Lidl's home country. Click here for more: https://www.supermarkt-inside.de/mere-bleibt-weiter-dran-neue-standorte-kommen/

Discount retail chain MERE (family owned by Schneider) has announced its arrival in Belgium and wants to challenge Aldi and Lidl there. Experts warn of the dangers of a price war that can be felt right down to the farmer. The Russian price fighter MERE has plans to open ten more stores in Belgium this year. The chain announced this in May. According to a director of the chain in Belgium, Jean-Claude De Gheest, the chain wants to open its first store in Opwijk in September. The Mere chain of stores is part of the Torgservis group and has a registered office in Siberia. In Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan, the group is active under the brand name 'Svetofor' and has 2,200 stores, according to Russian sources. In 2017, the Svetofor group expanded its operating area to Eastern Europe and opened stores in Romania, Poland, Serbia, Greece, Latvia, Ukraine and Lithuania. Further it is also operating stores in Spain and UK. Five German stores Since 2019, the chain with the brand name MERE has also been present in Germany with five stores. During the opening three years ago, the public was lined up to get in. The Russian chain wants to compete with Lidl and Aldi in Belgium and says it is 20% cheaper than its German competitors. This low price would be achieved with a sober shop layout, with a limited range of up to 2,000 SKUs displayed on wooden pallets or in cardboard boxes. Lower wages in Eastern Europe In addition, De Gheest says that it can also stunt in terms of price by using foodstuffs of Russian or Eastern European origin. “It is easy to understand that prices are up to 20% lower than in the aforementioned department stores. Wages in the Eastern Bloc are much lower. The chicken we offer comes from a farmer from Ukraine who uses his maize field down to the last piece of land.” By also offering products of Eastern European origin, MERE goes directly against the social trend of sustainability that has been gaining popularity in recent years and the growing need for products of local origin. “Many consumers are not interested in sustainability at all,” says Stefan Van Rompaey of the specialized retail website RetailDetail. “Sustainability is a luxury that many people cannot afford.” The expert does see opportunities for a new low-cost fighter on the Belgian market. “Lidl and Aldi are moving to the middle segment anyway, with the result that space is freed up behind it.” Largest supermarket density Luc Ardies, general manager of BuurtSuper, the sector organization of supermarkets, in turn questions the feasibility and especially the added value of a new supermarket chain. “Belgium has the largest supermarket density in Europe and then more supermarkets need to be added? In addition, all these supermarket chains already have cheaper private labels.” Ardies mainly fears the consequences of a price war that can accompany a launch. “You often see during an introduction that prices are stunted in order to gain market share. The result is that other supermarkets follow suit, creating a race to the bottom that mainly affects small supermarket companies. These are often franchisees who have to go along with the franchiser's policy. At the checkout, MERE wants to make a difference. The company says it is 20% cheaper than Aldi and Lidl. Price battle also felt for farmers “This price war can then be felt throughout the entire chain, right down to the farmer. “This while there is a lot of talk about a better price for agricultural products. Farmers are already paid too little for the work they provide and the investments they put into it,” continues Ardies, who says he is in favor of the French model. “In 2019, the discount campaigns on fruit and vegetables were put to a halt. 1+1 free promotions may no longer be applied to fruit and vegetables in France.” From three to five German stores According to Van Rompaey, things will not go so smoothly. “Obviously, Aldi and Lidl may feel rushed and continue to stunt their prices, creating a domino effect that can indeed be felt down to the farmer's level. But I don't see that happening right away. Mere also announced its arrival in Germany with great fanfare a few years ago, where only five stores have been opened to date.” Plans for France According to French sources, MERE also wants to open three stores in France before the end of the year. Sites in the northwest near Calais and in the far southwest near Nice are being considered, but no decision has yet been taken. MERE also wants to be the cheapest supermarket there, with prices up to 20% lower than Lidl or Aldi. See here for more: https://www.foodagribusiness.nl/russische-prijsstunter-met-oekraiense-kip-naar-belgie/

Store check: Russian ultra-discount brand Mere in Situ (Spain). Here is Olivier Dauvers visit in photos. 1 / The first Spanish Mere is… in an old Aldi As a nod to commercial history, the first store Mere opened in Spain was in an old Aldi store building (which can be recognized quite quickly by the architecture). About 800 m2, on a roundabout a few kilometers from the airport (for the curious who will make the trip, if you land by sea, you will see it!). 2 / Like a step back in time ... The first impression is startling. Especially for those who knew the first German hard-discounters in France in 1989/90, which is my case. By the way, just like that, a photo of Mere today followed by a photo of Lidl decades ago! Striking. 3 / Wall racks, central pallets The assets are summary. Very sketchy. On the wall (right and left), Mere has installed racks, warehouse style. In the center, no material. Just pallets on the ground which are used as support for supplier boxes. 4 / A staircase presentation Most products are handled by cardboard (and not by pallet, contrary to what is often written on Mere). For the visual effect, Mere opts for a staircase presentation and with products that are presented out of the box. Result: throughout my visit, I saw employees handling unitary products (and not just boxes, which obviously penalizes productivity). 5 / Fresh in a cold room-style area No fresh furniture at Mere. At the back of the store, fresh products (<50 items) are presented in a cold room of approximately 75 m2. There are also a few pallets of drinks (fruit juice, sodas, beers). 6 / Fruits and vegetables Do not look for a fruit and vegetable section, you would be disappointed ;-) Here, two references: an onion pallet and a potato pallet inside the cold room. For the rest, you will have to go to Mercadona 5 minutes away! 7 / The matches? On pallet! No fruit and vegetables (or almost) but the matches are presented on a pallet on the ground. I might have missed it before, but I don't remember ever seeing it. 8 / Non-food: 15 items Fairly early in the customer journey: non-food covers 15 SKUs. The offer goes in all directions (toaster, flashlight and power strip), reflecting Mere's strategy: opportunism. Ultimately, no different from other discounters. 9 / “Big” international brands: on the fingers of one hand Three major brands available: President (cheese), Barilla (pasta) and Coca-Cola. 10 / Large import from "the East": a few rare products Mere is preceded by a reputation as a seller of Russian products with questionable specifications. As much to say: it does not jump to the eyes. Yes, there are quite a few “Eastern” products like this Ukrainian sauce, but objectively there are very few of them. Not enough to generalize as we can read. In any case here in Spain (you can imagine that my tour of Europe for Mere did not stop at the Iberians border...). 11 / The most ambitious initiative ... Before going through the checkout, here is the most ambitious initiative in the shopping experience: a salmon aperitif snack with a palette of beer. Or when Mere reasons her merchandising by use ... Cross-merchandising at the cantor of ultra-discount! 12/ 3 cashiers Unadorned checkouts. No way to end on a gentler note! See here for more: https://www.olivierdauvers.fr/2021/06/21/mere-ultra-discount-ma-visite-a-valence-en-12-etapes/

Russian discount retail chain Mere (Schneider family owned ) has started accepting supplies of goods as it prepares to open its nearly completed first store in the UK. "We started taking deliveries at the Preston store. The opening date will be August 14th 2021," said The Grocer manager of business development at Mere UK, Aleksandr Czkalov. It is the first of four stores in the UK to be opened by Mere this year, the other three located in Castleford, Caldicot and Hiccups said that deliveries had so far been on schedule, although the company was prepared for the possibility of delays due to the ongoing national shortage of truck drivers. Mere wants to open 300 stores in the UK within a decade. Suppliers who want to work with Mere must deliver products directly to stores, and the chain will only pay them for the goods sold. Food will be on display on pallets and in a walk-in refrigerator. Each discounter with an area of about 10 thousand square feet will offer no more than 1,200 SKU, and the staff will be about eight people. See here for more: Mere prepared for uk first opening - Detail (dlahandlu.pl)

Discount Retail Chain Mere (owned by the Russian Schneider family) deploys to Spain and prepares for France. Mere is the translation of "mother", the Russian hard-discounter who seeks to establish himself in France. It will be in Pont-Sainte-Marie (10150), Sainte-Marguerite (88100) and Thionville (57100). On its website, the Russian distribution group Svetofor indeed announces three openings in France in October 2021 at the Mere brand. "The territory of the Grand Est region is chosen to start the development of the network", we can read. But the company says "plans to open stores in all major cities in France and establish links with suppliers across Europe." It should be remembered that this brand is looking for unclaimed sites of 700 to 800 m² with, ultimately, somewhat the same expansion strategy as Noz, for example. By finding fallow land, they are thus in a strong position to negotiate their rents. It is quite similar to the first settlements of Lidl and Aldi in the 1980s with pauperized surfaces. They are not building stores from scratch. They recover existing surfaces. See here for more: https://www.lsa-conso.fr/le-hard-discounter-russe-mere-va-ouvrir-trois-magasins-en-france-en-octobre,389398?preview=11

Russian discount retail chain Mere (owned by the Russian Schneider family) plans to open 10 stores in Belgium by the end of 2021. With a minimalist store concept reminiscent of the 80s and budget-friendly prices, it sees opportunities at the economy end of the market. Mere: A new player will soon join the retail landscape in Belgium, of which Flanders is the northern region. Russian discount chain Mere announced on its website that it wants to open 10 stores in the country this year. The exact locations are not yet known, except for three sites: one in Flanders (Opwijk) and two in Wallonia. No-frills stores Mere sells food, household products and pet food, in addition to production surpluses,” explained Stefan Van Rompaey of specialist retail site RetailDetail in De Tijd. "Think of it as a combination of Aldi from the 1980s and an outlet chain that sells stock lots." Mere promises customers the very lowest prices, which is precisely why retail experts suspect Mere might be successful. In recent years, traditional retail chains on this end of the spectrum, such as Aldi and Lidl, have moved closer to the middle of the pack by offering more fresh products and well-known brands. Mere offers no branded products and spends little money on marketing or store design. The company’s stores are spartan: no shelves, and a limited range of 1,500 to 2,000 essential products are displayed on pallets. The number of staff in Mere stores is also kept to a strict minimum. A lot of people don't care about a nice store layout. Mere's rock-bottom prices may be what sets the chain apart from others. Stefan Van Rompaey chief editor at RetailDetail Ultimate economy pricesIn De Standaard, Gino Van Ossel, retail expert at the Vlerick Management School, indicated that the arrival of Mere could have consequences for the supermarket landscape in Belgium and Flanders: "If a new retailer can offer rock-bottom prices, there is a good chance that all supermarkets will follow that trend. Initially this will be local, but in the long term, it might have a larger effect." European conquest tour Mere might still be unknown to us, but it is by no means a small player. The company is one of the largest discounters on the Eastern European market. In Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan, the chain operates under the name Svetofor. The retailer operates more than 2,000 stores in nine countries, accounting for EUR 1.3 billion in sales. In 2018, the discounter began a European conquest tour. Under the name Mere, it has already opened stores in Romania, Germany, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Spain. See here for more: https://www.flandersinvestmentandtrade.com/invest/en/news/russian-discounter-mere-enter-market-in-flanders?utm_source=linkedin&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=News+EN+Russian+discounter+Mere+to+enter+market+in+Flanders

Discount Retail Chain MERE (owned by the Russian Schneider family) is one of the Russian companies operating in Serbia, for a little over a year. They arrived on the Serbian market at the end of 2020, and in a very short time they managed to attract a large number of customers. This retail chain operates under the Svetofor brand and is owned by the Torgservis Group, which, before the war, operated in more than 2,000 locations in 25 countries and which has existed since 2009. However, the current situation has made business difficult for this Russian company as well, so, at the very beginning of this situation, as the media report, they had to close their store in Great Britain. According to the website RetailDetail.eu, Great Britain is not an isolated case, and in Spain the company had to close its eight stores, while in Germany, according to the allegations, the stores of the Russian retail chain were not closed. The advantages of this retail chain are that, as stated on their website, the prices are 20 to 30 percent lower than the market ones. "This can be achieved by reducing packaging costs, we do not need colorful and attractive packaging. In the case of well-known brands that have a reputation, that difference should be up to 50 percent, "the website states. We talked with the director of development for Serbia, BiH, Macedonia, Croatia of the retail chain about the situation in Ukraine and how it complicates the business of the Russian company in Serbia and the world, but also about the import of goods and how the citizens of Serbia accepted this trade chain. Russian retail chain Russian trade chain Mere, Development Director Mladen Milojica How has the situation in Ukraine affected your business in Serbia? The situation in Ukraine does not bring good to anyone, not even to us. However, at the moment, it has not significantly affected our business. First of all, because we were founded as a company that operates in accordance with Serbian legislation, in which our people are mostly employed, only the owners of the company are people from Russia. Given that your range mainly includes imported products, do you have any challenges when it comes to providing products for stores and how is the process being done now? Our range is based on the best prices. Currently, most of the assortment is Serbian production, goods from Russia are just a supplement. As for the import itself for this period since the beginning of the crisis in Ukraine, we have not had any difficulties, we believe that only the price of certain goods from Russia can change, which means that for some period a particular item may not be. How will this situation affect the business of the Russian trade chain Mere in Serbia, but also in the rest of the world, in the future? Unfortunately, the situation in Ukraine is not, so to speak, "their" story. That is something that concerns all of us. As far as the company's business is concerned, when we talk about the Serbian market, if everything remains as it is now, we will not have major problems, difficulties or obstacles to work. Which does not apply to the rest of the world, even our immediate region. For now, new strategies are being considered, but the situation is also being monitored. Time will tell what to do. To what extent are the expectations of the Mere chain on the Serbian market fulfilled by coming to Serbia? The MERE discount retail chain operates in Russia, as well as throughout Europe and the world. By coming to Serbia, they opened the door to a new format of markets in Serbia, by opening more than 25 markets in a year, we have very much met the original expectations in the Balkans, specifically in Serbia. How does the Mere retail chain differ from other chains in Serbia? Our focus is price, so we can freely say that this is what sets us apart. Namely, at the expense of the number of products, we strive to get the cheapest ones here. All this entails the way of exposure, selection of suppliers, number of employees, etc. Russian retail chain Russian retail chain Mere, supermarket How do you work when it comes to suppliers? What standards apply to your suppliers, in general? Our task is difficult. Find the cheapest, best possible quality. This is made possible by our fixed significantly lower margins than others and direct cooperation with manufacturers and developing companies. I assume that your assortment includes exclusively imported goods. Do you have a plan to include home-made items in your range? The assumption that has accompanied us since our appearance on the Serbian market is that we sell exclusively, or mostly imported goods, and quite the opposite. Most of our range is goods of domestic, Serbian production, both well-known brands and small, still unknown brands and companies. Unfortunately, the crown really made import more difficult, and Serbian suppliers are not all ready for the quantities that MERE can sell, so we are not able to expand the range to the extent that we would like it to flow. However, we also have goods from Russia, Poland, Belarus, Greece, Estonia, etc. The procurement sector is working hard, so we expect everything new from them. The corona virus pandemic has caused major disruptions in both the domestic and global markets. Although research and analysis show that retail was at one point almost the only industry to record growth, retailers also faced a number of challenges. What was your biggest problem and how did you overcome it? There is no job that can be done without people. Or if there are, there are few. In a discount market that pays attention to the costs due to the price of the products we offer to the customer, it is difficult and challenging when our employees become infected. However, our employees are organized as a team, so we manage and jump on each other. Considering that the Mere trade chain is a Russian chain, how is it maintained on the Serbian market that Serbia has preferential treatment with Russia, when it comes to trade? Interest and benefit are mutual in every sense. There is no Serbian supplier who would not like to export his goods to Russia, and when there are no bureaucratic obstacles, when the state supports and facilitates it, we believe that we are also an interesting market for Russian producers. Apart from believing that we are proving it by buying Russian products in our markets. What are your plans for the future? What are the prospects for expansion in the next 10 years? The Balkans came after ten years of existence and hard work of discount markets in the former Soviet Union. We cannot say that we are not happy that we are going and developing in step with the markets that have been operating in Russia, Belarus and other countries for years. We are present on all continents except Australia, so wherever there are people willing to buy the cheapest for us, there are no borders. See here for more: RUSKI trgovinski lanac u Srbiji: Situacija u Ukrajini nije samo njihova priča (bizlife.rs)

Discount Retail Chain MERE owned by Svetofor Group, which operates a chain of grocers in Russia and across Europe is planning to make its entry into Malaysia, possibly its first Southeast Asian destination. The group, known for its hard discount stores/budget supermarkets, is understood to be awaiting the green light from the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living to commence operations, sources say. The Edge understands that Svetofor Group, founded by Sergey Shnayder, had been eyeing the Malaysian retail market for more than a year now and the plan is to open stores in Ipoh, Perak, and the Klang Valley. Typically, these hard discount stores, which are similar to Germany’s Aldi and Lidl grocers, offer goods that are 20% to 30% cheaper than those sold by the competitors. As at May 23, Sergey and his family’s net worth was an estimated US$1.4 billion, making them the 2,281st richest in the world. Svetofor’s expansion into Southeast Asia is thought to have been prompted by the Russia-Ukraine conflict that resulted in the retailer shutting down stores in Europe, the UK, Belgium and Spain. It is worth pointing out that Malaysia has not imposed any sanctions on Russia. According to a source, the ministry may decide on the group’s application “by the end of May”. The Edge did not receive a response to questions sent to the ministry. Under Malaysia’s domestic rules governing foreign participation in the distribution trade, all foreign grocers are required to obtain government approval to operate. The rules also impose a minimum and maximum floor size requirement and for 30% of the products on the shelves to be sourced from bumiputera small and medium enterprises. Large format stores, such as hypermarkets, need to either have a 30% bumiputera equity partner or comply with another set of rules that includes contributing 0.1% of annual revenue to a bumiputera Retail Development Trust Fund for 10 years. It remains unclear what store category this new foreign group plans to open in Malaysia, whether as a supermarket, superstore or speciality store, and what brand name it will use here. Apart from the brand Svetofor, which translates into traffic lights, the group also operates hypermarkets under the brand Mayak and hard discount stores under the brand name MERE in Europe. Forbes says the group operates more than 2,000 stores globally. Based on available videos and articles online, it appears that Svetofor operates warehouse-type supermarkets. Items appear to be left in boxes/carts and are not organised on shelves. This hard discount store concept is also referred to as a budget supermarket or poor people’s supermarket. MERE on its website, under the topic “requirement for suppliers and delivery conditions” says the price of goods, including the cost of delivery to the store should be 20% to 30% lower than in competitors’ stores. This is achieved by reducing packaging costs as they do not need colourful, eye-catching packaging. MERE stores are typically located in large and medium-sized cities in close proximity to roads with heavy traffic. They are placed on the ground floor and allow 30 to 40 cars to park. The sales area ranges from 800 to 1,200m2. For comparison, a shop lot is about 150m2.  A source tells The Edge that a company called Partner Retail Sdn Bhd has approached potential suppliers to deliver goods to its stores. A search on the Companies Commission of Malaysia website describes Partner Retail’s nature of business as “retail trade in a chain of supermarkets”. The shareholders of the company are Sergey Shnayder (79%), Andrey Shnayder (15%) and Iakovlev Valeriy (6%). All three are also directors of the company. There are two other directors, Korchagin Denis and a local Aizad Saman. Sergey and Andrey are siblings. Another company registered to the Shnayder siblings and Valeriy is Trade Project Sdn Bhd, whose shareholding is divided in a similar fashion to that of Partner Retail. Aizad and Korchagin are listed as directors of the company whose nature of business is described as “supermarket, other retail sale in non-specialised stores and activities of holding companies”. Based on Partner Retail’s company registration number, The Edge was able to find a Jobstreet advertisement placed last month for the position of category manager in Ipoh. The responsibility of the category manager, the advertisement said, would include identifying new suppliers, coordinating with suppliers on assortment, terms, price, discounts and payment terms. Should Svetofor’s entry be approved, it would mark the entry of the first foreign grocery player since the exit of Hong Kong’s Dairy Farm International Ltd (DFI) from the grocery retail scene. Last February, DFI, which operated a chain of hypermarkets and supermarkets, including Giant, Mercato and Giant Mini brands, sold its business to a local group led by Datuk Andrew Lim Tatt Keong. ExaStrata Solutions Sdn Bhd CEO and chief real estate consultant Adzman Shah Mohd Ariffin views the entry of Svetofor positively given the benefits from a new investment. “Naturally, having a new player in the market will bring positive indications for the country in terms of investment, employment opportunities and downstream services.” “Svetofor carries a concept of discount supermarket format. Presently in Malaysia, supermarkets tend to be offering higher priced products in a high-end ambiance. If the prices can be lower given its discount nature, Svetofor could be giving the local chains a run for their money, especially in the current high inflation situation,” says Adzman who is also the former director of expansion for Carrefour Malaysia and ex-CEO of Hektar Property Services Sdn Bhd in charge of Hektar REIT retail portfolio management. Etiqa Insurance and Takaful chief strategy officer Chris Eng says, “The fact that there are foreign retailers still keen on entering what others may deem a rather small and competitive market is positive for Malaysia. The country has often been tagged as a small consumer market given our smaller population in relation to that of our neighbours such as Thailand, the Philippines, Vietnam and, of course, Indonesia.” He adds that should the retailer be aiming for the lower-income group via hard discounts, it makes its decision surprising given the closure and departure of hypermarkets from Malaysia over the last few years due to the intense competition in the market. Eng observes that while competition is tougher with players like 99 Speed Mart and KK Mart already in the field, competition is less intense outside the Klang Valley and Penang. In another development early last week, KK Supermart Group and the government of Samarkand region in Uzbekistan signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at strengthening ties and collaboration between the two countries and to enhance trade and investment activities. Uzbekistan was a Soviet socialist republic from 1924 to 1991 and Russian is widely spoken there. Read more: Russian grocery retailer Svetofor gears up for Malaysian debut ( theedgemalaysia.com ) #smartdiscount #mere #malaysia #svetofor #development #business #growth #drc #discount #retail #consulting #discountretail #discountretailconsulting #retailconsulting #google

The owner of a large international chain of discounter Lidl has registered a trademark with Rospatent. The company has been looking closely at the Russian market for the past 18 years, but now the niche in which the retailer operates has begun to actively develop. German company "Lidl Stiftung & Co." issued the rights to use the Lidl trademark in Russia for the retail class. Under this sign she develops a chain of supermarkets-discounters in Europe and the USA. At the moment, their number exceeds 11 thousand. Lidl is part of the Schwarz Group, owned by the German billionaire Dieter Schwarz. In 2020, Forbes ranked the entrepreneur as the 30th richest person in the world. During the day, Lidl did not respond to an inquiry from Delovoy Petersburg about the company's plans in Russia. However, it is known that the retailer has been eyeing the Russian market for a long time. Thus, in 2003-2009, LLC LIDL Holding RUS, owned by Lidl Stiftung & Co., was registered in St. Petersburg. and another German company belonging to the same group. In 2004, the St. Petersburg authorities said that they were negotiating the arrival of Lidl in the city. At that moment this did not happen, but, apparently, the company did not abandon its plans, the correspondent of "DP" found the presentation of Lidl 2015, dedicated to the upcoming expansion of the network in Russia. In the St. Petersburg section of the HeadHunter website there is a page of the employer "Lidl", it is indicated that the company operates in the retail trade. But not a single vacancy has been opened on her behalf. Petersburgers are familiar with Lidl stores located in Estonia and Finland. Before the pandemic, Lidl even paid for shopping tours from St. Petersburg to Lappeenranta, provided that the tourist buys goods for a certain amount at a local store. Internet services for the delivery of goods from Lidl to Russia still exist. As a rule, Lidl stores open in detached buildings with an area of ​​700-1000 m2 with parking. A special feature of the chain is its large share in the assortment of its own brands. The company often saves on shelves by displaying goods in boxes and other containers. Now this format of trade is being developed by the Russian networks "Svetofor" and "Mayak", originally from Krasnoyarsk, showing impressive growth rates. In recent years, traditional retailers have also shown interest in discounters, launching the networks "Da" (owner - "O'Key"), 365 ("Lenta"), "Chizhik" (X5). Many international grocery chains showed interest in the Russian market. Official offices of the world's largest retailer Walmart, the French giant Carrefour, operated in Russia. German Aldi registered its trademark here. But in the end, these companies did not open stores. At the same time, the French "Auchan" and the Finnish Prisma took root in Russia. The German chain Billa has been operating in Russia since 2004 (mainly in Moscow), but soon it will leave the country - all of its stores were bought by Lenta. Experts' opinions on the prospects of Lidl entering the Russian market were divided. “We see a very high popularity of the discounter format,” says Ivan Fedyakov, CEO of INFOLine. ... But a discounter is not just a dirty store in an inconvenient place. It's still a store in which the share of its own brands can exceed 90% of the turnover. Our companies, with the exception of Lenta, have such an assortment of brands that to make a separate project, not yet. And Lidl has it. He can come here with his own set of brands and thus to some extent crush this market for himself, because they have just this competence more than enough"... "The background that they have accumulated in Germany and other countries will not work at all in Russia," objected Andrei Karpov, president of the Russian Association of Retail Market Experts. they will not be supplied with goods at a lower price. Often for those who are used to being big, it can be quite difficult to suddenly find themselves in a situation of small petitioners. The simpler option is a situation where they can buy a player. Then they immediately get some kind of then the volume of stores, employees who have work experience in Russia, and it will be easier for them to enter. Are they ready for this?" Typically, the registration of the Lidl trademark coincided with the purchase of Dixy by Magnit and Billa by Lenta. “Somehow import companies don’t take root in our country,” says the co-owner of the “Real” chain Alexander Myshinsky. “Lidl, of course, is much stronger than those who were. They are very successful in entering new markets. Will they be allowed to bring their own brands here? And the second question, how competitive with the current euro rate will these brands be? In Russia, essential goods are quite cheap, much cheaper. See here for more: https://m.dp.ru/a/2021/05/19/Diskaunter_po-nemecki_Li

Last week has been very eventful. We observed a kind of redistribution of the Russian retail market, initiated by several industry leaders at once. Magnit acquired the Dixy retail chain, (see our post https://www.discountretailconsulting.com/post/magnit-to-acquire-dixy-business-with-2-651-stores-in-moscow-st-petersburg-and-other-regions ) and Lenta bought the Billa Russia supermarkets. Behind this high-profile news, one piece of news remained almost unnoticed: the German discounter chain Lidl (owned by the German Schwarz Gruppe) registered a trademark with Rospatent, which indicates its intention to open a Russian store. Will Lidl be able to compete with local Russian discounters such as Fix Price, "SVETOFOR", "Nahodka", "DA!" ("Okay"), "Chizhik" (X5)? Why does the Billa (owned by REWE) no longer see prospects in our country, and the German Lidl, on the contrary, is once again trying to enter the Russian market? What makes Lidl the largest discounter chain in Europe? We will try to answer these and other questions in this article. "Eternal" enemies Like many famous German companies and brands today, Lidl was founded back in the 30s. last century as a wholesaler of food products. After World War II, Lidl, which had already gained fame in Germany, the company was destined to revive only a few decades later as a chain of discount stores. The first modern discounter Lidl opened in the city of Ludwigshafen in 1973. Within ten years the company operates a whole chain of 300 stores, and the name Lidl becomes a household name throughout Germany. In the late 80s - early 90s. Lidl began to actively expand outside Germany: in 1989 the chain made its debut in France, in 1992 in Italy, in 1994 in Spain and Great Britain. In its foreign expansion, Lidl followed the path of its "eternal" competitor Aldi, another German discount chain, dating back to 1913 (the first modern stores appeared in the sixties). In the USA, Aldi still maintains a noticeable advantage over Lidl, 2,000 versus 100 stores, thanks in part to its early entry into the US market (Aldi opened its first store in 1976, and Lidl in 2017). And in Europe, both chains maintain parity: Lidl is more represented in the east of the continent, while Aldi is in the west. Surprisingly, even in the total number of stores, Lidl and Aldi are not inferior to each other: each retailer operates around 12 thousand discounters. We add that in this race, Aldi entered the Chinese market in 2019, which, however, turned out to be not as successful as expected, due to the lack of demand for the discounter format in the fast-growing China. At the same time, Lidl's potential debut in Russia could be a good response from Aldi, especially given the growing popularity of low-price stores among Russians. Traditional Lidl in Europe occupy an average of 1,000 sq. m, and in the USA, 3,000 sq. m. The assortment of European Lidl is represented by 1,500 SKU, and American, 4,000 SKU. In all stores of the chain, 90% of the assortment of the retailer belongs to private labels brands. What is good for a German, death for an American! Lidl makes format exceptions for the American market. This is due to the retailer's failures, which began immediately after the opening of the first stores on the East Coast of the United States, and subsequent attempts to attract American consumers with new formats and an assortment that was unconventional for discounters. In the summer of 2017, Lidl literally burst into the US retail market with an ambitious plan to open 100 stores in a year. Brendan Proctor, CEO of Lidl in the USA, called "flexibility and adaptability" the main strengths of the company and predicted the retailer's imminent leadership in this segment. Indeed, after more than 40 years of work abroad, Lidl left only one market, Norway in 2008. In all other countries of presence, the German discount chain was able to achieve success. However, it was precisely in terms of flexibility and customer understanding that Lidl failed in the US. 9 months after its debut, by January 2018, Lidl had managed to open only 47 stores. At the same time, the company's management decided to abandon previous plans and open only 20 new stores in 2018. As a result, the 100th Lidl discounter in the United States opened 3 years later than planned, in May 2020. Schwarz Group CEO (owner of Lidl) Klaus Gehrig admitted that the company did not take into account the consumer interests of Americans. He highlighted several key issues for Lidl in the United States. First of all, the assortment of American Lidl was almost devoid of frozen products and semi-finished products, which are very popular in the United States, especially among visitors to low-price stores. In addition, the company initially chose a large discounter format that was unusual for itself, as a result of which customers complained about the complex navigation system in the store. American Lidl lacked non-food items, and prices of many products were sometimes on par with neighboring Walmart or Kroger. The German retailer also made many mistakes when choosing locations for stores: discounters were located too far from the city center, which is why consumers refused to come there. Experts believe that Lidl set a goal from the very beginning to be the opposite of Aldi in the United States, which at that time already operated more than 1,500 stores in the country. Instead of a traditional discounter assortment, Lidl began selling locally sourced organic produce, hoping to differentiate itself from Aldi and attract customers. However, such products were in no way combined with the simplistic interiors of hard discounters and were not well received by the Americans. As a result, Lidl still managed to find its buyer in the United States, including thanks to the development of a mini-format and a revision of the assortment, but, of course, plans to conquer the American retail market are out of the question. The influence of Lidl on local American retailers is interesting. For example, according to last year's study by the University of North Carolina, the opening of a Lidl store in Long Island, New York, forced competitors to reduce food prices by 15%. It is noteworthy that not only is it difficult for German retailers to develop in the United States, but American companies also fail in Germany. So, in 2006 Walmart left the German market after 9 years of work in the country. The American giant lost more than US$ 1 billion without understanding the German consumer. Lockdown and offline bet The coronavirus pandemic and lockdowns hit European discounters hard, and Lidl was no exception. The UK retail market, on which Lidl has been betting for a long time, has been particularly hard hit, planning to open 1,000 stores there by 2023 (there are now 800 chain stores operating in the country). In February 2021, the UK store of Lidl published its financial results for 2019-2020 (before the start of the pandemic): for the year, the retailer lost 25.2 million pounds (US$ 35.6 million). That said, the German retailer has adopted a new £ 1.3bn (US$ 1.8bn) investment plan to hire more employees and expand its stores in the UK. This plan focused primarily on the development of offline stores, which is in line with the company's overall strategy, and did not sufficiently take into account the growth in online sales, which accelerated with the arrival of COVID-19. During the lockdown, the British were less likely to visit Lidl and order grocery deliveries from other stores. Aldi also experienced a similar problem. Lidl now hopes to regain its lost positions in the United Kingdom, hoping that in the face of the economic crisis, the British will prefer discounters to supermarkets. However, Barclays analyst James Ansted disagrees: "If you are nervous about COVID-19, would you rather go to a supermarket with wide aisles and large parking lots or a small and cramped discounter?" HSBC analyst Andrew Porteous believes that price will be the "key weapon" for British retailers in the struggle for leadership. The price gap between discounters and mainstream UK supermarkets is now around 10-12%, up from more than 20% a few years ago. Soon, the price advantage of discounters such as Lidl and Aldi in the United Kingdom will become less visible, forcing them to transform their formats or reduce their presence in the market. Lidl in Russia - Dream or Reality? Lidl has made plans to enter the Russian market more than once. In 2003, the German retailer registered Lidl Holding RUS LLC in St. Petersburg, which existed until 2009. However, not a single Lidl discounter was opened in Russia during that period. Later, in 2015, Lidl released a presentation on expansion into Russia. Lidl then called its main local competitor "Dixy". The retailer saw the advantages of the Russian market in the growing middle class, and the disadvantages in cultural differences, competition, high inflation and instability of the local currency. However, those plans were never implemented. If Lidl intends to enter the Russian market, then there is no better time than now. Sad as it is to admit, falling real incomes are forcing Russians to pay more and more attention to prices and look for discounts in stores. In this regard, low-price stores Fix Price, Nahodka and Svetofor (which, moreover, opens Mere discounters in Europe) are growing record-breaking in the country, and the leaders of the FMCG market are starting to launch their own discounters, Chizhik from X5, “DA! " from "OK" and others. “A discounter is by no means a dirty store in an inconvenient location. It is, after all, a store in which the share of private labels can exceed 90% of the turnover. Russian companies, with the exception of Lenta, do not yet have such an assortment of brands to make a separate project. And Lidl has it. He can come here with his own set of trade marks and thereby to some extent crush this market for himself, because they have just this competence more than enough," Ivan Fedyakov, CEO of INFOLine, commented on the news of Lidl's arrival to Russia. Andrei Karpov, President of the Russian Association of Retail Market Experts, disagrees with him: “The background that they have accumulated in Germany and other countries will not work at all in Russia. They will have to start all relationships with suppliers from scratch. And until they create volume, suppliers will not supply them with goods at a lower price. Often, for those who are used to being big, it can be quite difficult to suddenly find themselves in the situation of small supplicants. A simpler option is a situation where they can buy a player. Then they immediately receive a certain volume of stores, employees who have work experience in Russia, and it will be easier for them to enter. Are they ready for this? " Foreign companies (with the exception of Metro and Auchan) are rather few in the domestic retail market, which is why the possible arrival of the German Lidl cannot be ignored in the context of the departure of the Austrian Billa after the purchase of the Russian subsidiary by Lenta. Billa made its debut in Russia in 2004, positioning itself as a low-cost store. For 17 years, the Austrian retailer managed to open 161 supermarkets in Moscow and St. Petersburg, subsequently abandoning the discounter format (as in European branches). However, in recent years, Billa has been systematically closing stores in Eastern Europe and the CIS. In the fall of 2020, the company sold its last stores in Ukraine, and left Romania in 2017. At the same time, Lidl, on the contrary, is strengthening its presence in this region: in 2018 the retailer opened its first stores in Serbia, in 2016 - in Lithuania, in 2011 - in Bulgaria. The final difference in formats and policies in the region explains the difference between Billa and Lidl in terms of their vision of the Russian market. And the experience of Lidl described above in Europe and the USA speaks of the retailer's readiness to change the format of stores and assortment based on the realities of a particular country. See here for more: https://www.retail.ru/articles/lidl-gotovitsya-k-debyutu-v-rossii/?from=weekly&utm_source=sendpulse&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=retailru-lidl-gotovitsya-k-deb

Brothers Sergey and Andrey Schneider, owners of the Svetofor chain, have opened more than 50 stores outside of Russia in four years. How are Siberian entrepreneurs building an empire of discounters abroad and what kind of customer are they counting on? On the penultimate day of January 2019, hunters for big discounts gathered on the outskirts of Leipzig, Germany. The zealous Germans were attracted by the news of the opening of a new Mere store "the Russian clone of Aldi and Lidl" (popular chains of hard discounters in Germany). No one expected such a success on the very first day: huge queues lined up in front of the cash register, in the aisles between pallets and boxes. Mere offered pasta, canned food, soap, wine and household goods at prices 20% less than competitors. Two days later, the store in Leipzig had to be closed, as all the products were sold out there. At that time, the Torgservice company operated in Russia and neighboring countries more than 900 stores of its flagship Svetofor brand and dozens of Mayak hypermarkets. But the owners of the family business, Sergey and Andrey Schneider, were seized by a new idea - expansion into Europe. The pandemic slowed down, but did not stop the process: to date, more than 50 low-price Mere stores are operating in Germany, Poland, Spain, Great Britain, Romania, Ukraine, the Baltic countries, etc. "They never had yachts and villas" In 2021, Valentina Schneider and the family entered the Forbes 200 richest Russians list for the first time, taking 182nd place with an estimated fortune of US$ 650 million. Entrepreneurs always refuse to communicate with Forbes. They refused this time too. As noted by the German edition Handelsblatt, in their non-publicity, the Schneiders are similar to the founders of the German network Aldi, the brothers Karl and Theodor Albrechts. The Schneiders are from Krasnoyarsk, where they started their first business. “Despite the fact that they are Germans by origin, they live in Russia,” says a familiar businessman from Krasnoyarsk. "Modest, they never had yachts or villas." In 1994, they created the Lenkom company, which was engaged in the distribution of beer and low-alcohol drinks (worked with Baltika, Ochakovo, Heineken and grew into a large regional wholesaler), and the Napilnik chain of alcohol, tobacco and snacks stores... However, the real success of the Schneider brothers was brought by another project stores of cheap everyday goods "Svetofor". “They have a family business,” says a Forbes source. The modern structure of asset ownership is very similar to that of Lenkom: the elder, Sergey, has a larger share, the younger, Andrey has less (according to SPARK-Interfax, Sergey has 61.3%, Andrey 3.2% - Forbes). Their mother is a pensioner. Draw your own conclusions. " Valentina Schneider officially owns a controlling stake in the Torgservice group and retired long ago, like her 82-year-old husband Ivan, who is also registered as a shareholder in many of the family's more than 100 trading companies. In 2009, when Krasnoyarsk businessmen decided to build a network of hard discounters "Svetofor", it was a completely new concept. The business model of "Svetofor" eliminated all unnecessary expenses for logistics, storage of goods, store lighting, advertising, and communication with the press. There are no shelves or counters in stores, they sell goods directly from boxes and from wooden pallets. The minimum mark-up allows you to keep prices in the "traffic light" by 20-30% below the market average. The annually shrinking incomes of the population made hard discounters very popular stores, first in the Schneider's native Siberia, and then outside it. Today the retail business is united by the Torgservice group of companies. It operates the Svetofor and Mayak retail chains with over 3,000 stores. The group's revenue at the end of 2020 amounted to 189 billion rubles (according to the Infoline agency). Over the past year, the indicator grew by 39%, making the company the fastest growing in the FMCG segment in Russia in 2020. At the end of 2020, according to Infoline, the volume of retail space of the Torgservice group of companies amounted to 1.25 million square meters. m, the company entered the four largest retailers in terms of floor space after Magnit, X5 Retail Group and Lenta. In terms of sales, the company is among the top 7 Russian food retailers. Four years ago, the Schneider brothers felt cramped in Russia. Since 2017, entrepreneurs have decided to go international and have opened Svetofor discounters in Kazakhstan and Belarus. On one of the retailer's sites it is indicated that from the same moment preparations began for the opening of stores under the new laconic Mere label (translated from English “simple, clean, ordinary” - Forbes). Surimi and seaweed The conquest of Romania, the first country from which the Schneiders began their expansion into Europe, was not easy. In October 2018, Mere opened its doors to residents of the Snagov commune, located 40 km from Bucharest. It took the Schneiders almost a year to do this, although it was planned to open 15 discounters in 2018. “Everything was going very hard: there were problems with coordination and equipment,” Daniel Vasile, manager of the Romanian Mere , frankly complained during the opening. Entering the new market, Mere announced that it would be the cheapest hard disk discounter in the country (locally, the main competitors are Germany's Lidl and Penny Market). “Our progenitor is Svetofor from Russia, and we are practically a clone of their stores,” Vasile said. Our main advantage is the price 20% lower than the market price. It is difficult, but if we do not achieve this, the goods simply will not end up on our shelf." The Mere concept in many respects repeats the already tried-and-tested model of the Russian "Traffic Light". Shop ranging from 800 to 1200 sq. m should be located on the first floor of a non-residential building on the outskirts of a medium or small town where people "with low financial potential" live. Parking for 30-40 cars is mandatory. The premises that are rented must have a convenient driveway for cars, a central entrance for buyers and a cargo gate with the ability to access and unload vehicles with a 20-ton trailer. Distance from educational institutions and churches is important to meet the requirement for a license to trade in alcohol. In addition, a separate clause specifies the presence of at least a five-year warranty on the floor, which must withstand goods on pallets and in boxes weighing up to 3 tons per sqm. The average number of store personnel is about 11 people, and investments are about € 1million (US$ 1.2million). According to the manager in Romania, the store receives its first profit a year after its launch. See here for more: https://www.forbes.ru/biznes/437333-russkiy-aldi-kak-vladelcy-magazinov-svetofor-stroyat-roznichnuyu-set-v-evrope

Discount Retail Chain Aldi South saw its sales rise by approximately 500 million euros to reach 18.8 billion euros in 2025, yet it is losing market share in Germany's fiercely competitive food retail sector. Positively, Aldi South has consistently enhanced the productivity of its individual stores over recent years. Currently, a single store generates 9.3 million euros in net sales. However, the potential for growth in new markets has been exhausted, allowing competitor Lidl to outperform even within Aldi's own sales territory. Aldi Süd maintains its strategic focus, as 2025 marked the third consecutive year of increased operating results. This growth was mainly due to efficiency improvements, despite a decline in the margin compared to the previous year. The gross margin has remained stable at around 23 percent in recent years, with investments similar to the previous year. With the number of stores constant at 2,022 locations, Aldi achieved growth in existing spaces. Price leadership is to be maintained Aldi Süd aims to regain its market share by relying on its traditional strengths and values. Recent austerity measures, including cost reductions in regional staff and headquarters, contribute to this goal and are intended to benefit customers directly. Alongside job cuts, the discounter is strengthening its collaboration with external service providers. The IT and outsourcing company "Tata Consultancy Services" (TCS) recently announced an expansion of its partnership with the retailer. To achieve this, regular price reductions are expected to boost customer trust further. This is especially evident in the consistently low prices for fruits and vegetables. The goal is to maintain price leadership, which competitor Lidl frequently challenges. To enhance this position, the supply chain needs improvement. There are still too many defective items affecting sales. Automatic stock replenishment, which is not yet fully optimized, is intended to address this issue. Instances have occurred where contracted manufacturers failed to deliver on time and at competitive prices. Reducing suppliers also poses a risk of not compensating for disruptions. Despite losing market share, Aldi remains one of Germany's top-selling retail chains. The company continues to benefit from strong brand recognition, a clear discount image, and a loyal customer base. However, industry experts note that the upcoming years will be crucial. The food retail sector is undergoing significant structural changes, whether in digitalization, supply chain adjustments, or increasing demands on product supply.  By March 2026, Aldi is expected to be in a stable position but under significant strategic pressure to adapt in an increasingly dynamic market. Read more: Aldi Süd makes a nice increase in sales, but market shares under pressure - Supermarkt Inside #smartdiscount #aldi #germany #revenue #marketshare #growth #development #tata #outsourcing #it #drc #discount #retail #consulting #discountretail #discountretailconsulting #retailconsulting #google #twitter #harddiscount #hd