The national retail network for construction materials, Acom, is relying on 1bn euros in turnover over the next 4 to 5 years, German businessman Stache Lutz, Acom's majority shareholder, told Ziarul Financiar. The German investor already has interests in the same field in Romania.
Another German investor that has sensed the potential of market is the German Interpares Mobau Interbaustoff Group. The German group has gone into partnership with DA1fa in order to open 20 centres on the Romanian market in the next few years.
"The construction supplies trade has reached approximately 4.5-5bn euros a year and is shared between retail chains such as Metro and Praktiker and 2,500 independent retailers, which account for most of the market. We want to get about 200-250 independent retailers to join Acom as shareholders," explained Stache Lutz, adding that 7 companies had already participated in the setting up of Acom Company.
"In three or four years' time, 60% of independent retailers will go out of business," said Lutz.
Stache Lutz is the main shareholder in German AHG Group, whose business involves logistics and construction supplies and whose turnover derived from Germany and Poland amounts to 80 million euros.
Lutz has been an active investor in Romania for the past seven to eight years in his role as majority shareholder in Simcor Oradea Group, which expects a 40 million-euro turnover for 2004, and through his 7% stake in construction supplies producer Elpreco. Simcor acquired Lafarge's Romanian lime business last year and has now submitted a bid to buy Soceram Bucharest together with Celco Constanta. Soceram is the last major stated-owned company in the industry.
"Acom is a retail platform, a concept developed 30 years ago in Western Europe and the US. In this respect, Romania is where Poland was 10 years ago. We have a network similar to Acom there, called PSP," described Lutz.
"I sell one share for every company that joins the Acom chain and will eventually reduce my interest to 50%. Companies that join Acom as shareholders see to their business individually. We will negotiate with companies abroad since there are technologies that are not known here, which we will sell to our partners. On the other hand, we will provide specialised consultancy and shipping through the Acom member companies. We want to export through Acom, as well," Lutz explained.
Acom already includes Mirada Arad, Orizont Sighetu-Marmatiei, Metalurgica Industrial Oradea, Indy Go Cluj, with Baduc Bucharest and others are preparing to join, network officials say.
adrian.mirsanu@zf.ro
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