Lidl to Roll out 14 Romania Stores in 2014

German retailer Lidl, which entered the Romanian market in 2011 by acquiring Plus supermarket chain, will open 14 new stores this year, ZF.ro reports.

The chain will keep its last year's expansion pace with the goal of having 183 stores at the end of the year as a result of strong growth in sales and the number of customers.

"We will keep the last year's expansion pace and open stores in many areas of the country," said Maksymilian Braniecki, Chairman of the Board of Lidl Romania.

According to estimates, a Lidl store opening requires a EUR 1.0 mln investment, including both the land cost and construction of the store itself.

Lidl has not provided information on its 2012 financial results, but according to a report by the Competition Council at the end of the year Lidl exceeded the sales result of Real and Auchan chains, meaning that the German retailer had a business of more than EUR 650 mln. By comparison, Lidl Romania had a EUR 400 mln business in 2011.