Diversity in European retailing

Abstract

The Romanian market entry marks yet another step in the internationalization of the German discount icon Aldi, who started venturing outside its home market in 1967 and to date generates almost half of its revenue abroad, with Europe accounting for the majority of this percentage (Planet Retail 2008). This is particularly remarkable as the European retail market and especially food retailing are very diverse and face retailers with countless challenges in their striving for European cross-border expansions (de Mooij and Hofstede 2002). Consumer preferences vary considerably across Europe and it is even hard for local stores to keep up with ever-changing and highly fragmented consumer tastes and needs.