Essl Fund has taken full control over do-it-yourself retailer BauMax, after having bought 12.45% from Spar for an undisclosed sum, according to kamcity.com. Spar had acquired 12.45% in BauMax in 1995, when the Austrian retailer exchanged it for Spar"s do-it-yourself division Buettinghaus.
BauMax is planning to expand to Bulgaria this year and open new units in Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia and Romania. On long-term, the company is contemplating expansion to Turkey, Ukraine and Yugoslavia, according to BauMax Executive Manager Martin Essl.
BauMax currently operates 128 stores in seven SEE countries and closed 2007 with sales of 1.25 billion EUR. BauMax opened their first store in Romania in October 2006 and has expanded to five stores since. Plans for the next few years include opening five stores per year in a bid to become the leader of the respective market in Romania.