LIDL gets EBRD loan to launch network in Romania
German discount retail giant LIDL & Schwarz, whose business
stands at about 55 billion euros, got the approval of the EBRD
board for a 200 million-euro loan to finance the launch of the LIDL
hard discount store chain in Romania, among others, scheduled for
2011.
These resources will cover half of the group's investments in the
first LIDL openings in Romania and Bulgaria and in the development
of the discount hypermarket chain Kaufland on the markets of Poland
and Bulgaria. Contacted by ZF, the EBRD representatives did not
provide any details about the amount allocated to the LIDL Romania
project by the time the story was ready for print. The network is
already building the first stores on the domestic market, and owns
more than 20 or 30 plots in Romania, according to market data. LIDL
will officially launch in Romaina by opening more than 10 stores at
once, the model the operator uses on every new market it
enters.