ROMANIA: FMCG, the only sector where retailers took further the expansion | Progresiv
The only sector in which surveyed retailers expanded more in 2017 than in the previous year is the FMCG, where players opened 298 stores, compared to 249 units in 2016, according to the Retailers' METRICS study by Cushman & Wakefield Echinox. 
About 66% of these stores were inaugurated by a single retailer active in supermarket and proximity stores, while hypermarket operators have just opened five new stores. On this background, the FMCG sector is the only one in which turnover growth is estimated in 2017 below 10% and 7.8% respectively.
The study examined the growth and turnover growth of a number of 99 retail companies operating under 120 brands from FMCG, Fashion, Electro-IT, Cosmetics, Sports Articles, Footwear, Children's Stores, Jewelry, Restaurants and Cafes, Home & Deco and Bookstores.
"With an average turnover of 11.3% and 524 new stores, 2017 was a new favorable year for the local retail market, even if the result is below the level recorded in 2016. Thus, 2017 was one year in which retailers continued to optimize their chains, which included removals and closures of stores, while benefiting from a favorable market environment where consumers had an increased appetite for shopping", said Cristi Moga, Research Consultant Cushman & Wakefield Echinox.
