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Joy and relief were almost tangible Thursday at Hema's headquarters in Amsterdam. A new Dutch owner, new capital and peace for management and franchisees. After more than a year in the showcase, Hema can once again "look to the future," sighed CEO Tjeerd Jegen at a press conference on sales. "We will have a nice trip."
Quiet holidays are certainly not, immediately recognized Jegen and the buyer Marcel Boekhoorn. "Times are not easy," said the new owner. "We must put all our sails". "We need to reduce debt, modernize Dutch department stores and increase sales via the Internet, but to succeed again, Hema must become an" international brand, "said Jegen." As a result, we have more weight and we can finally participate in the Retail Champions League. "
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Read about Marcel Boekhoorn also: A very intelligent accountant who became" a rich smile "
Hema, in the Netherlands in eight The company has the most experience in Belgium, where the first stores were opened in the nineties.At the beginning of the century, the chain has expanded to Germany. , then to France in 2009, to Spain and the United Kingdom
The international expansion was not fast enough for Jegen, who took office in 2015. Hema ( 11,300 employees) must become an international company "at a rapid pace" l reported to NRC in 2016 against . Against the ANP press agency, Jegen had already dropped the fact that half of the turnover should come from abroad within ten years. At present, about a quarter of the 1.2 billion euros business figure comes from stores overseas.
Hema in Abu Dhabi
And why stop in Europe while the rest of the world beckons? In January of this year, Hema announced plans to open stores in the Middle East. The first opened in Abu Dhabi last month. Branches may soon follow in Dubai and Qatar.
The choice for the United Arab Emirates depends on the range of stores in the country, a spokesman said. According to him, it is mainly expensive expensive stores. "But there are also" ordinary "people who live there, he writes, They need Hema stuff, with" nice design "and" cheap ".
But how does it end? Hema foreign adventure? This can be deduced from the results only to a certain extent.The company does not divide all the figures by country, but it shows the evolution of the turnover.Similar sales – the produced sales of stores opened a year earlier – also increased last year.The turnover increased by 3.5% in Belgium and Luxembourg, by 1% in France and by 6% In countries where Hema has fewer stores, it does not publish any figures.
However, the latest quarterly results are not very good.In France and Germany, comparable sales fell by more than 8 % and more than 12.
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Read also: Now, Hema wants to participate in the "Champions League"
Profit figures – or in the case of Hema figures losses – are known only to society as a whole. Last year, Hema suffered a loss of 31 million euros. The deficit was 10 million in the last quarter.
Hema is not discouraged by the meager results. With Boekhoorn as the owner, Hema can "accelerate investments outside the Netherlands," Jegen's CEO said Thursday. He mentioned the two countries where Hema has existed for a long time and the places where shops have just opened. Austria, for example, the two Viennese shops operate "like a train" – and the Middle East.
But new countries, even more distant from the Netherlands, get a Hema when it is up to Jegen. Specifically, he called "the Far East". The conversations about the stores in an Asian country are "at a fairly advanced stage". Which country he did not want to say. In any case, it is not China – "not yet".
The desire to become a giant international company stems from a simple reasoning: in the Netherlands, there is enough Hema, a serious growth is only possible at the # 39; abroad. The more stores there are in a country, the more efficient the operation and therefore less expensive.
Utrecht Trucks
All stores, from Birmingham to Barcelona, are now stocked from the Hema Distribution Center in Utrecht. It's also advantageous that a truck can deliver multiple stores in one country. If Hema gets big enough, it will have to pay to open distribution centers in other countries. The Dutch budget chain Action, which is growing faster than Hema internationally, now also has warehouses in Germany in France. Hema operates all European stores, but in Abu Dhabi, Hema collaborates with the Apparel Group, a local department store. This partner is responsible for issues such as the location of stores, staff and marketing, by sending an email to the spokesman. The Apparel Group buys the products from Hema at a cost price plus a "certain percentage". Hema remains "responsible at all times" for the brand.
The assortment is adjusted by country and region. So: no rain boots in the south of France, but solar products. But some typical Dutch things also have success abroad. Stroopwafels for example. It is the best-selling product in all European countries.
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