April 12 (SeeNews) - Greek toy retailer Jumbo said on Tuesday it will open a new 15,000 sq m hyper-store in the central Romanian city of Sibiu this year and plans to inaugurate two more in 2023.
Jumbo also plans to launch its online store in Romania next year, it said in its 2021 annual report.
During the first quarter of 2021, the group's stores operated with restrictions and certificate controls due to the Covid-19 pandemic, mainly affecting the performance of the stores in Bulgaria and Romania, where the vaccination coverage was lower. Overall, the increase in sales in Romania for 2021, was approximately 7%, compared to 2020, despite the successful opening of the new store in Craiova in November 2021, Jumbo said.
Jumbo posted a gross profit of 98.3 million euro ($107.4 million) in Romania in 2021, compared to 84.4 million euro a year earlier. The retailer's sales in Romania amounted to 182 million lei in 2021, compared to 170.1 million lei the year before.
Jumbo's sales in Romania represented some 22% of the group’s 2021 turnover. The Romanian market generated 24.51% of its total earnings before taxes, financial and investment results.
At the end of 2021, Jumbo employed 1,384 in 15 hyperstores in Romania. The company operated 81 stores in Greece, Cyprus, Bulgaria and Romania and two online stores, in Greece and Cyprus, as at the end of 2021.
($=0.9154 euro)