June 21 (SeeNews) - Supermarket chain operator Billa Bulgaria, part of Germany's REWE Group, said that it turned to a consolidated net loss of 2.3 million levs in 2018 from a net profit of 5.1 million levs in 2017, due to a drop in its sales margin.
Billa Bulgaria's sales revenue grew to 760.5 million levs last year from 718.3 million levs in 2017, the company said in an annual financial statement.
Cost of goods sold increased to 579.2 million levs in 2018 from 542.7 million levs the year before.
Expenses for hired services rose to 85.2 million levs in 2018 from 76.8 million levs in 2017, while personnel costs rose to 56.1 million levs from 53.0 million levs.
At the end of 2018, Billa Bulgaria employed 4,512 people, down from 4,569 a year earlier. The company operated 124 stores at the end of last year.
So far this year, Billa Bulgaria opened several new stores, growing its network to 127 stores across the country. Earlier this year, the company said that it will invest over 34 million levs in expansion and renovation in 2019.
Billa Bulgaria consolidates the results of its units Billa Service and Billa Import.
Billa entered the Bulgarian market in 2000.
(1 euro = 1.95583 levs)