Again wholly family-owned

Austria’s market leader Baumax has bought back the 12.45 per cent of shares in the company previously held by Spar with effect from 31 December 2007. The two sides have agreed to maintain silence on the subject of the selling price. The result is that the company is again 100 per cent owned by the Essl family, who are planning a comprehensive expansion of their business operations in central and southern Europe over the next few years. This includes the launch of a first store in Bulgaria this year, and new branches are to be opened in Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia and Romania as well. And as chief executive Martin Essl explains the company’s further growth plans: “In the long term we also intend to become involved in Turkey, Ukraine and ex-Yugoslavia’s successor states.”