Speaking at a briefing in İstanbul, BİM board member Haluk Dortluoğlu noted that the Turkish retail sector grew by 4 percent last year, while growth in the food retail sector was 2 percent. He also noted that the retail sector’s store growth -- both in square meters and employment -- was 15 percent in 2010. Announcing BİM’s latest figures, Dortluoğlu said the company was able to increase its annual turnover by 24 percent, reaching TL 6.57 billion in the past year. “This is the first time that BİM, which ranked second in terms of turnover in 2010, became the market leader in the discount grocery sector. As of today, we have 3,009 stores around Turkey. This means our stores cover an area of 800,000 square meters,” he noted. The executive stated that BİM currently has 16,508 employees and 2,000 more will be added in the short term.
Moreover, Dortluoğlu mentioned that inflation in Turkish processed goods was 5.68 percent in 2010; however, they only increased food prices by 2.9 percent in the past year. He also noted that the company managed to enter the world’s 250 biggest retailers ranking, prepared by global consulting firm Deloitte. Talking about BİM’s investment strategies this year, Dortluoğlu said the company plans to invest about TL 200 million, increasing the number of stores to 3,359 and the number of warehouses to 35 by the end of 2011.
“We also plan to open 40 stores in Morocco, which will increase our stores in the African country to 84. BİM is also currently conducting research on the Saudi Arabian retail market. If everything goes as expected, we plan to reach an agreement with a local player in Saudi Arabia within 3 months time,” he added.
Also speaking at the same meeting, board member Galip Aykaç underlined that the global economy is recovering from the financial crisis. “In line with this, consumer confidence in countries reached pre-crisis levels this year and household consumption grew by 9 percent compared to 2010. Turkey’s organized retail sector has a bright future,” he said.
