ROMANIA: Cora resumes local investment | Progresiv
French-Belgian retailer Cora resumes the investments on the local market after about two years. Cora announced that it will develop its online operations by expanding its product range, but also by launching the Drive services in all Bucharest hypermarkets. In addition, the retailer will expand the area of Cora City Park Constanta store and analyzes other expansion opportunities. 
“2015 was a good year for Cora Romania and the results motivate us and compel us to maintain this performance. We have two stores in Constanta and decided to expand Cora City Park to provide a pleasant shopping experience to both locals and tourists”, said Philippe Lejeune, CEO Cora Romania.
Regarding the online expansion, Cora announced that it will list online all products available in the classic stores. For starters, the online store will have over 30,000 products, and until the end of the year over 50,000 products will be available online, the company stated.
Also, the retailer will develop its CoraDrive services by opening this year three new points - at Cora Pantelimon, Cora Sun Plaza and Cora Alexandriei in Bucharest - and will continue to invest in the modernization and optimization of the hypernarkets’ chain activity.
Cora has not invested in the store chain expansion since 2013, when it opened two hypermarkets, in Afi Ploiesti and Constanta. Moreover, also in 2013 it launched the coradrive.ro platform, the first drive among Romanian hypermarkets, and in 2014 the retailer expanded its services on the home delivery segment, the service being available in Bucharest for a range of 14,000 products.
In 2014, Cora reported a turnover of 1.7 billion lei, up by 6%, but the losses increased to 25 million lei compared to the 14.5 million lei in 2013. Cora is owned by Louis Delhazie group and activates on the local market since 2003, currently having a chain of 11 hypermarkets, after last year it closed the hypermarket operated in Arad.
