German consumer electronics retailing group Media-Saturn announced yesterday it has acquired 003.ru, a leading Russian online retailer of consumer electronics, from its founder Vladislav Ulendeev, for an undisclosed amount.
Founded in 2000, 003.ru generated revenues of €20 million euros in 2011 with a headcount of approximately 50 employees. The brand 003.ru comes number four in the customer awareness ranking for online consumer electronics retailers in Russia, according to the group.
In the future, 003.ru will continue to be managed as an independent entity and expanded further under its current name. The German acquirer hopes 003.ru will take advantage of the know-how provided by its e-commerce subsidiary Redcoon, whose offer ranges from electronics to books to music instruments.
The acquisition is still subject to approval by the relevant antitrust authorities.
The Media-Saturn Group entered the market in Russia in 2006 and currently operates 37 stores there. Last year the group’s Russian national subsidiary generated revenues of €873 million, the group stated. The multichannel platform www.mediamarkt.ru was launched in 2011. Customers can order a product from their local Media Markt store and pay for it via the Internet. A delivery service then delivers the product and, if desired, installs it. Customers can also pick up the product at their local store themselves and take advantage of the range of services offered at the store.
“The online pure player 003.ru is a perfect fit for our dual online strategy, which comprises both our multichannel offerings and pure online sales. Our objective is to position our new subsidiary in Russia as an inexpensive online retailer, similar to Redcoon in western Europe,” said Horst Norberg, CEO of Media-Saturn-Holding GmbH.
- RUSSIAN E-COMMERCE REPORT 2012 – The total volume of Russian online retail reached 310 billion rubles, a little more than $10 billion, in 2011, up 25% at least from the previous year. EWDN has published an in-depth research on Russian e-commerce, which includes a discussion on acquisitions and IPOs in this industry. To receive free insights or to order the full version, please contact us at [email protected].
