Wikipedia

Pepco (retailer)

Pepco is a Polish variety store chain with stores across Europe. It is part of the London headquartered and Polish listed 'Pepco Group' alongside sister brands Poundland and Dealz.[3] Pepco stores account for most of the group's stores with 3500 branches across Europe (out of a total of 4600),[1] and has replaced Dealz (in format and brand) completely in most European countries, except for Poland and Ireland.[1][4]

Pepco
Company typePrivate
IndustryRetail
Founded2004; 20 years ago (2004)
HeadquartersPoznań, Poland
Number of locations
3500 (2024)[1]
Key people
Stephan Borchert (CEO)
Productsconsumer goods, clothing, DIY, electrical
Revenue€1.98bn (March 2024) [2]
OwnerPepco Group
Number of employees
25,000 (2024) [1]
Websitepepco.eu
Pepco shop in a shopping center in Poznań, Poland
Pepco store in a retail park in Bielawa, Poland

History

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In 1999 the British retailer Brown & Jackson expanded into Poland, where they opened Poundstretcher stores in the country.[5] Following poor performance, B&J Poland was sold to South African firm Tradegro in 2002 and was taken over by Pepkor in 2004. Following the takeover, the business and stores were rebranded to Pepco.[6]

From 2013 onwards, Pepco began to expand into other European markets:[7][8]

  • 2013 – opened stores in the Czech Republic and Slovakia[9]
  • 2015 – opened stores in Romania[10] and Hungary[11]
  • 2017 – opened stores in Croatia, Slovenia and Lithuania[12]
  • 2018 – opened stores in Latvia[13] and Estonia[14]
  • 2019 – opened stores in Bulgaria[15]
  • 2020 – opened stores in Italy and Serbia[16]
  • 2021 – opened stores in Spain and Austria[17]
  • 2022 – opened stores in Germany, Greece[18] and Ireland[19][20]
  • 2023 – opened stores in Portugal,[21] Bosnia and Herzegovina,[22] and Azerbaijan[23]

In 2023, the majority (79%) shareholder of Pepco, Steinhoff International was delisted and restructured in a plan to avoid bankruptcy following years of lawsuits and heavy losses after holes in the company's accounts were exposed in December 2017.[24] Any bankruptsy was however not expected to harm Pepco given its strong balance sheet and independent sources of finance.[25] Following the restructure 2023 Steinhoff's shareholding was transferred to the new entity Ibex Topco B.V.[26]

In Poundland and Dealz

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Since 2023 Poundland and Dealz stores have been phasing out their own brand and previous "Pep&Co" branded products and clothing, replacing them with Pepco branded ranges. This transition was seen as a potential cause for a dip in like-for-like sales at the group in 2024 [27][28]

In the United Kingdom, Pepco products are marketed as being "only at Poundland".[29]

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Our Brands". Pepco Group. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  2. ^ "Pepco Group reports 11% revenue growth in H1 FY24". Retail Insight Network. April 2024. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  3. ^ "Poundland owner Pepco snubs London with plan for £4bn Polish listing". Sky News. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  4. ^ "Pepco Group simplifies structure will turn Dealz brand into Pepco". CIJ Europe. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  5. ^ "History". Pepco Group. Retrieved 22 April 2024.
  6. ^ "Chcą podbić nasz region - Archiwum Rzeczpospolitej". archiwum.rp.pl. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
  7. ^ "O nas". pepco.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  8. ^ James Davey (19 February 2021). "Discounter Pepco has all of Europe in its sights". reuters.com. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  9. ^ "Mamy już 1000 sklepów w Europie". pepco.pl (in Polish). 27 October 2016. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  10. ^ Gabriel Negreanu (13 January 2022). "O poveste de succes din Estul Europei? Lanţul polonez Pepco, cu peste 370 de magazine în România, a înregistrat o nouă creştere şi vrea să se extindă în Vest". mediafax.ro (in Romanian). Retrieved 28 July 2023. Lanţul polonez este prezent în România din 2015
  11. ^ "Pepco rozwija sieć i wchodzi do Rumunii". dlahandlu.pl (in Polish). 10 March 2015. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
  12. ^ "PEPCO zawitało na chorwackim rynku". pepco.pl (in Polish). 7 April 2017. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  13. ^ Lelde Petrāne (13 March 2018). "Polijas ķēde Pepco drīzumā atklās pirmo veikalu Latvijā". db.lv (in Latvian). Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  14. ^ Wojciech Wojnowski (21 April 2020). "PEPCO Poland Sp. z o.o." retailnet.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 28 February 2022.
  15. ^ "PEPCO w Bułgarii". pepco.pl (in Polish). 15 March 2019. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  16. ^ Katarzyna Łabuz (24 June 2021). "Pepco Group na fali wznoszącej. Kontynuacja strategii ekspansji". retailnet.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 28 January 2022.
  17. ^ "PEPCO już w Austrii!". pepco.pl (in Polish). 23 September 2021. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  18. ^ Omada Sindaksis (5 October 2022). "Pepco | Πού θα ανοίξει στην Ελλάδα 7+3 καταστήματα η πολωνική αλυσίδα". hania.news (in Greek). Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  19. ^ "New retail brand for Sligo as Pepco opens store". December 2023. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  20. ^ "Leading discount brand Pepco opens new store in Ireland". ShelfLife.ie. 13 June 2023. Retrieved 12 April 2023.
  21. ^ "Pepco w Portugalii". Pepco Polska (in Polish). 7 June 2023. Retrieved 23 April 2024.
  22. ^ "Pepco otworzyło pierwsze sklepy w Bośni i Hercegowinie". Pepco Polska (in Polish). 14 September 2023. Retrieved 23 April 2024.
  23. ^ [1]
  24. ^ "S. Africa regulator fines former Steinhoff CEO for accounting fraud". 20 March 2024. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  25. ^ Maciej Badowski (28 July 2023). "Właściciel Pepco ogłasza bankructwo. W tle długi i poważne oszustwa. Co ze sklepami w Polsce? Poznaj stanowisko firmy". wspolczesna.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  26. ^ "Governance - Pepco Group". Pepco Group. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  27. ^ Wright, Georgia (2 February 2023). "Pep&Co to axe jobs at UK head office - Retail Gazette". www.retailgazette.co.uk. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  28. ^ "Poundland sales dip as it overhauls general merchandise". Retail Gazette. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  29. ^ "Pepco Clothing - Poundland". Retrieved 12 April 2024.
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