Cash & Carry to invest €146 million in Egypt

German-based Metro Cash & Carry, will be adding Egypt to the list of 29 countries in which it operates. Metro CEO Frans Muller, said that the Egyptian market is an important one: “By entering the Egyptian market we are pursuing our international expansion strategy and making an important step into the very promising high-growth region of the Middle East and North Africa.”

"We hope to be able to roll-out our business across the country as fast as possible," stated Muller. "We will be starting out in Cairo and Alexandria but in the long term Metro Cash & Carry estimates an overall market potential for more than 20 wholesale stores in Egypt."

They will be setting up 10 stores in Egypt in the medium term (approximately three years) with the first store set to open in Cairo by the end of 2009.According to Muller, each outlet will have a footprint of +/- 7,000 square meters and offer a high-quality assortment of both food and non-food items. Each store will require a sizeable investment of €15 million and will provide approximately 250 new job opportunities for the local workforce.

Approximately 90% of the products sold in Metro Cash & Carry’s Egyptian stores will be locally sourced. The company also plans to become involved with other aspects of the supply chain, such as packaging and refrigeration so that product shelf life can be extended.

The Metro Cash & Carry business-to-business model is unique in Egypt. Muller adds, “Professional customers will find everything they need to run their business under one roof. A restaurant owner in Egypt, for example, will find all his purchasing needs. He can buy fresh fish and vegetables, pans for his kitchen and paper for his office…because customers can visit us as often as they like we can act as a sort of warehouse helping them to improve their cash management."