Express lifetime for the Mere store in Opwijk. Only three after its chaotic opening, due in particular to the war in Ukraine, the Russian brand is already closing its doors. “Insufficiently profitable”, reports Het Laatste Nieuws who nevertheless specifies that this does not mean the end of the chain in Belgium.
It should indeed focus more on the big cities by opening ten stores. Will this happen? Hard to say.
As a reminder, more than a year ago, the Russian supermarket chain Mere, announced competitor of Aldi, announced its intention to open ten stores in Belgium in 2021, including the first in Opwijk. A plan that had finally been undermined by several problems, including supply with suppliers. The war in Ukraine had not helped the schedule of the sign which had finally gotten used to the many postponements of opening.
Finally, last June, Mere’s first Belgian store opened in Opwijk, Flemish Brabant. An opening that had not only made people happy in the context of the war. And the beginnings were difficult: suppliers who did not want to cooperate, absence of customers but above all, a bancontact not operational the first day which had forced the few customers present… to abandon their shopping at the checkout for lack of cash.
Insufficiently profitable
In mid-October, the Opwijk store will therefore close its doors for good. “Unfortunately, our store in Opwijk will close for customers in mid-October. Commercially, this store proved to be insufficiently profitable. Our plan is to open ten stores in Brussels, Antwerp, Ghent, Bruges and Leuven. We are therefore looking for properties in these cities. As of next week, some of our suppliers will be picking up their goods. If you still want to buy something, it’s better to do it as soon as possible. We are very sorry, but we hope to welcome you back to our new locations which we will announce later,” the Facebook group wrote in Dutch and Russian.