Retail fortification

Vobis, one of the biggest retailers of computer and electronic goods in Poland, is getting ready to float on the bourse. Its prospectus will be submitted in August and the IPO will probably take place in Q4 this year.

"Our revenue is higher than that of many companies listed on the bourse," explains Tomasz Kordas, the vice president of Vobis' management board. The company has not revealed the exact value of the IPO, but admits it will cover the majority of the firm's zł.200-million investment strategy for 2007-2008. Vobis' key goals include expansion of its retail chain by 115 outlets, 50 of which it will operate itself. The firm currently has 160 sales outlets, 75 of which are self-operated.

"Poland is one of the biggest and most dynamic markets in the CEE region," explains Dariusz Pietraszkiewicz, the president of Vobis' management board. "We need to speed up [development] to take a good position in the growing market."

Additionally, Vobis wants to target CEE markets, starting with the Czech Republic and Slovakia. A crucial advantage of such a step, according to the company, is the lack of potential competition for its retail format - stores staffed by knowledgeable and helpful people. "It is hard to predict whether this format will work in the Czech Republic," Krzysztof Komorowski, an IT market expert from the Sobieski Institute, told WBJ. "Still if the company acts shrewdly, we cannot rule out its success," he said.

Other goals include the development of online sales and construction of a new warehouse. In 2006, the company earned a net profit of zł.20.1 million, 117 percent higher than in 2005. In Q1 2007 the company saw zł.194,981 in net profit.