Metrika seeking to optimise

The Russian DIY chain is to close around 15 per cent of its branches. According to the business newspaper Vedomosti, the company will close every seventh store in 2015 and reduce the staff in the administrative head office by ten per cent. The St. Petersburg SBR Corporation operates more than 100 Metrika stores and explains the planned cutback measures with the economic situation but also with the optimisation of the branch network. Primarily affected are small stores with between 500 to 1 000 m² sales floor space in the Wolga area and in central Russia, which are not operating profitably. However, new branches are still planned, a company representative said. For example, a large-scale store with 14 000 m² sales floor space near the St. Petersburg Metro station Ladoshskaja is due to open its doors soon.
Michail Burmistrov, CEO of the market research company, Infoline Analytika, anticipates that the planned measures won’t have any serious consequences for the company as to date, it isn’t that well-established in the regions but is well-accepted in St. Petersburg and surroundings.