Leroy Merlin now with 20 stores in Russia

Leroy Merlin, a DIY chain, has already opened two new stores in this current year. They both came into operation in February, one in Samara, where the company already has an outlet, and the other in Krasnojarsk. As a result the giant DIY retailer, which belongs to the French Groupe Adeo, now also has a presence in the third-biggest city in Siberia (after Novosibirsk and Omsk), where around one million m² of living space was created in 2011.The new store in the Planeta Krasnojarsk retail park has 15 departments and a product offer in excess of 40 000 items on a retail area of 11 500 m². Provision has been made for the expected monthly influx of half a million customers in the form of wide aisles and 30 checkouts. The store director believes that the essential difference between his outlet and the local competition, especially Dommer, lies in its spacious design and a pricing level that is at least five per cent lower than elsewhere. The company’s top management is optimistic that the initial investment in the Krasnojarsk store will have been amortized in two years’ time.