IKEA Romania passes EUR 80 mln sales threshold

IKEA Romania SRL, the local subsidiary of Swedish furniture retailer IKEA, posted EUR 81.6 million net sales in 2013, up 6 percent compared to 2012, according to data published by the Finance Ministry. The company posted a net loss of EUR 490,000, seven times lower than the one in 2012. The data also shows a significant increase in number of employees, to 472, from 366 in 2012. IKEA has only one shop in Romania, which is located in the Baneasa shopping area, in the northern part of capital Bucharest. The store was opened in 2007 by Romanian businessman Gabriel Popoviciu, following a EUR 25 million investment. In 2010, IKEA took direct control of the Romanian unit. IKEA Trading Services, a firm which provides management consulting services for Ikea’s operation in Romania, also posted higher sales last year. The company had revenues of EUR 6.7 million, which is 10 percent more than in 2012, and a profit of almost EUR 100,000. It had 81 employees. Andrei Chirileasa, andrei@romania-insider.com