DiaSA aims to expand network
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Hürriyet Daily News
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Mart 25, 2009 00:00
ISTANBUL - DiaSA, the fastest-growing supermarket chain in Turkey, aims to increase the number of its stores in the country from 620 to 700 this year.
The discount chain is a joint venture between Sabancı Holding and Dia, a member of the Carrefour Group. It has a presence in 22 Turkish cities and has grown by 30 percent each year over the past five years.
"The modern retail market in Turkey is experiencing strong, rapid growth and is estimated to have reached $257 billion in 2008," Haluk Dinçer, president of Sabancı Holding’s retail group, told reporters yesterday. "Roughly half of this market is comprised of food sales. This is where we see notable growth potential in the future."
The new supermarkets will be opened in the Marmara and Aegean regions, Dinçer said. "Our policy is to open supermarkets no further than 350 kilometers from our warehouses in Istanbul and Izmir. By the end of the year we will have 700 supermarkets in Turkey. We are looking at opportunities to expand to eastern Turkey as well, but do not see this actual expansion taking place any time soon."
DiaSA is particularly interested in increasing its number of franchises in Turkey, which has the largest share of franchise markets in all 31 countries where Dia operates, with more than 180 franchises. "We expect that 60 of the new stores to open this year will be franchise markets," said Fernando Gonzalez, the general manager of DiaSA Market and Dia Franchising.
"Supermarkets can join DiaSA quite easily. In addition to providing the retail premises, they simply need to pay an entry fee of 5,700 Turkish Liras, make an initial investment of approximately 120,000 liras and provide a letter of guarantee from their bank."
In 2008, DiaSA achieved gross sales of 683 million liras, said Francisco Xavier De La Pena, the Dia International director responsible for European markets. Though the group’s sales in Turkey increased by 15 percent throughout 2008, he said that sales experienced a significant slowdown after the global credit crisis began in the fall. "This year, we expect the situation to be totally the opposite," La Pena said. "The first half of the year is likely to be a quiet period, but after the summer, sales will pick up again. Our target is to grow by some 18 percent in 2009."
Sales of Dia’s own brands have increased notably over the past five months and La Pena says they are "likely to grow by 50 percent over this year. Consumers are increasingly attracted to more economic food products."
Turkey’s young and growing population shows the country’s future potential, Dinçer said. "As per-capita income increases, consumers are starting to look for wider variety and higher quality. Some 70 percent of the Turkish population already lives in urban areas and urbanization is changing consumer habits. This all means serious growth potential," said Dinçer.
"The modern retail market in Turkey is experiencing strong, rapid growth and is estimated to have reached $257 billion in 2008," Haluk Dinçer, president of Sabancı Holding’s retail group, told reporters yesterday. "Roughly half of this market is comprised of food sales. This is where we see notable growth potential in the future."
The new supermarkets will be opened in the Marmara and Aegean regions, Dinçer said. "Our policy is to open supermarkets no further than 350 kilometers from our warehouses in Istanbul and Izmir. By the end of the year we will have 700 supermarkets in Turkey. We are looking at opportunities to expand to eastern Turkey as well, but do not see this actual expansion taking place any time soon."
DiaSA is particularly interested in increasing its number of franchises in Turkey, which has the largest share of franchise markets in all 31 countries where Dia operates, with more than 180 franchises. "We expect that 60 of the new stores to open this year will be franchise markets," said Fernando Gonzalez, the general manager of DiaSA Market and Dia Franchising.
"Supermarkets can join DiaSA quite easily. In addition to providing the retail premises, they simply need to pay an entry fee of 5,700 Turkish Liras, make an initial investment of approximately 120,000 liras and provide a letter of guarantee from their bank."
In 2008, DiaSA achieved gross sales of 683 million liras, said Francisco Xavier De La Pena, the Dia International director responsible for European markets. Though the group’s sales in Turkey increased by 15 percent throughout 2008, he said that sales experienced a significant slowdown after the global credit crisis began in the fall. "This year, we expect the situation to be totally the opposite," La Pena said. "The first half of the year is likely to be a quiet period, but after the summer, sales will pick up again. Our target is to grow by some 18 percent in 2009."
Sales of Dia’s own brands have increased notably over the past five months and La Pena says they are "likely to grow by 50 percent over this year. Consumers are increasingly attracted to more economic food products."
Turkey’s young and growing population shows the country’s future potential, Dinçer said. "As per-capita income increases, consumers are starting to look for wider variety and higher quality. Some 70 percent of the Turkish population already lives in urban areas and urbanization is changing consumer habits. This all means serious growth potential," said Dinçer.