September 24 (SeeNews) - Romanian IT and consumer electronics retailer Flanco said on Friday it has opened its first hybrid business unit in the southern city of Ploiesti following an investment of 2.5 million lei ($592,880/ 505,142 euro).
The 2,000 sq m new space will serve both as a point of sale and as a logistics platform for products ordered online, Flanco said in a press release.
Located in AFI Ploiesti shopping mall, the new hybrid store employs 30 and is Flanco's biggest one so far.
"This change is part of our expansion strategy in high-traffic shopping centers, in terms of profitability, but we are also looking for a perfect online-offline integration, so necessary in the current conditions," Flanco retail manager Ionut Cirstea said.
Flanco, founded in 1990, is currently owned by Iulian Stanciu, CEO of Romanian online retailer eMag. Currently, Flanco has a network of 157 stores and employs over 1,500.
Flanco's net profit fell 44% on the year in 2020 to 22.3 million lei after the temporary closure of 70 stores during the lockdown imposed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Its sales dropped by 10.8% to 1.08 billion lei in 2020.
(1 euro =4.9491 lei)