Billa

Billa Corso in Voitsberg, Austria

Billa is a European supermarket chain operating in numerous countries and originating in Austria. It is owned by Germany's Rewe Group.

Contents

1 Billa in Austria
2 Billa in Europe

2.1 Billa in Bulgaria
2.2 Billa in Romania

3 See also
4 External links

Billa in Austria

Billa was founded in 1953 by Karl Wlaschek under the name of WKW (Warenhandel Karl Wlaschek). The name Billa, standing for Billiger Laden (cheap store), was adopted in 1960. The chain grew quickly during the following decades, with revenue topping a billion Austrian shillings in 1970. In 1996, Billa was acquired by Rewe, and, following the demise of the Konsum and Meinl groups, became Austria's largest supermarket chain, with a 35.8% market share of in 2002. In some areas of the country, particularly in Vienna, it is safe to say that Billa is almost a monopolist, as hardly any supermarket other than Billa or any of its other franchises (Merkur, Mondo/Penny, Emma and Bipa) can be found.

While typical Billa markets are urban stores of about 450 square meters per outlet, hypermarkets of the group operate under the brand name Merkur.

Billa in Europe

According to Eurobilla there were 210 Billa stores in Eastern Europe. In 2005, the Rewe Group Austria plans to open 80 new stores. In 2004 Billa recorded sales of 1 billion Euros in Eastern Europe.

Billa operates stores in these 8 European countries:

Billa in Bulgaria

The company opened its first hypermarket in Bulgaria in 2000 and has since then expanded to cover 12 Bulgarian cities, operating a total of 19 hypermarkets. Several others are in construction or in planning.

Billa in Romania

Billa is owned by Rewe Group, which also operates XXL and Selgros outlets in Romania. The company uses the tagline Billa - Cel mai bun pentru mine (Billa - The best for me) and opened its first store in Bucharest in 1999. Since then, Billa turned into one of the most well-represented supermarket chains with 20 stores in Romania:

Billa's stores are generally referred to as hypermarkets, due to their size and accompanying infrastructure. Billa's newest Bucharest store has an area of 2000 sq. metres, with a parking lot for 200 cars, it employs 100 people and stocks 7500 products. Despite the sizable investment, Billa's Romanian operations recorded a profit of 5.99 million new lei (1.6 million euro) in 2001. A 2001 plan called for 50 stores by 2005. While this goal was not achieved, the supermarket is expanding at a very fast rate.

External links