Supermarkets aims for better market presence by forming own association

An association representing supermarkets has been formed under the name Polish Organization of Trade and Distribution (POHiD). POHiD's president Eduardo Madeira Lopes, of the Portuguese company Jeronimo Martins, estimates members of the organization will invest about $1 billion in Poland this year. POHiD will act on behalf of its eleven members by representing it in talks with the government and by monitoring public perception of the supermarkets. It also plans to educate people about the social benefits that come with increased economic freedom. "We are an ally of consumer organizations and will co-operate with them to foster development of small- and medium-sized domestic companies," said POHiD's vice-president Iwona Szczepanska of Tesco Polska. Supermarkets in Poland currently employ about 73,000 workers and most of them are Poles. "Domestic companies and foreign companies operating in Poland supply supermarkets with 85% of their products," said Lopes. The organization says the development of the supermarkets would help reduce inflation and unemployment, and would boost technological development. (Prawo i Gospodarka, page 1, 3) M.M.