BWG Foods to invest €10 million to support future growth of fast-growing symbol group
Sporting greats join Londis retailers in celebrating continued success at biennial convention
Leading retail and wholesale group BWG Foods has announced a new €10 million investment programme for its Londis brand, which is aimed at supporting the convenience retail network’s current growth plans up to 2022.
The investment programme, which was announced to retailers today at Londis’ biennial Retail Conference event in the Europe Hotel in Killarney, will facilitate continued upgrades and redevelopments across the retail network of stores, in addition to marketing programmes that will enhance the brand’s penetration in the retail marketplace.
This investment follows 5 years of consecutive growth for the Londis brand since it was acquired by BWG Foods in 2015, delivering cumulative growth of 15 percent during the period, pushing total annual retail sales to more than €340 million.
The rate of growth, which significantly outperformed that of the wider retail market, was achieved through the rollout of a new store design in 2016, investment in national marketing campaigns, and a recalibration of the network’s product mix to better reflect shopper trends. A key sales driver for Londis retailers has been fresh food offerings which now represent 18 percent of overall retail sales, versus 12 percent at the time of BWG Foods’ acquisition in 2015.
Commenting on the investment programme and the success of the Londis integration, Leo Crawford, Group Chief Executive, BWG Group, “Since 2015, Londis has fully integrated itself as an integral and high performing part of BWG Foods, making it a great success story. The combination of BWG’s retail expertise and significant distribution capabilities, along with the commitment of capital, has helped Londis grow its network of stores and outperform the market in terms of its retail sales. We are confident that our commitment to invest a further €10 million into the brand will position our Londis retail partners for continued success into the future.”
BWG Foods also announced that it is investing significantly in the development of a bespoke educational training programme for Londis retailers and store staff, which will further enhance the offering to customers.
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