Survival of PIC stores, in the hands of suppliers

Several weeks after PIC hypermarket network filed for insolvency, Ilie Penescu says the only things he can do now to save his business is to persuade suppliers to resume their deliveries and find buyers for PIC assets.
"Everything depends on suppliers: should they not resume deliveries to Pitesti and Craiova hypermarkets, we will have to close them. Shelves for electronics are empty at this moment, which is hurting our client traffic. We're now procuring only by paying on delivery for products, but we want to resume procurement with normal payment terms," Ilie Penescu stated.
Penescu brothers' production business and the construction firm they hold in Pitesti are also included in the insolvency proceedings, being integrated, besides the hypermarket network, in PIC SA group.
PIC holds debts of around 60m euros to banks, suppliers and business partners, according to the data previously provided by the company.
Two years ago, the biggest assets the group held at that moment, four hypermarkets with shopping galleries, were valued at 70-80m euros, with two of them being brought as a contribution to share capital. The group has been trying for several months to sell its assets to raise cash, and Ilie Penescu says that several investment funds have voiced their interest lately in taking over PIC spaces.
"We'd renounce everything that can be sold to get cash, but amid the current market conditions we cannot find any buyers," Penescu also said.
"We ceased collaboration with PIC in March and at this moment the network still holds debts to our company. Until these are paid off, we do not intend to resume collaboration," the representatives of Supreme Group, Primola chocolate producer, told ZF.
Before filing for insolvency for the group with 150m-euro turnover in 2008, Penescu brothers tried to reorganise the business and sell the real estate assets of the network.
Two of the group's 5 hypermarkets are still operational now.