First Romanian Store for 50 Style

In October, 50 Style, originally from Poland, made the jump into the Romanian market with a brand-new store in the Iris Shopping Center in Bucharest. With a total surface area of 315 square metres, it’s the first move into Romania for the Polish brand and it confirms reports from Colliers International Romania that they plan to expand across Eastern Europe as a result of increasing demand.

In recent years, Polish retailers have been enjoying much success not just at home but in nearby countries too. As a result, these brands are starting to become more ambitious with their expansion plans. With 50 Style, they’re now well-known for sportswear, sports products, footwear, and even fashion; they also span across various price ranges.

Associate Retail Agency at Colliers International Romania, Brindusa Grama, has said “The very good coverage Polish brands enjoy in their home market, alongside Poland being a top performer in the EU, has allowed them to seek other markets with strong potential in Eastern Europe. With a very good position, Romania is the second largest market in the region, similar to the Polish one, with high consumption sustained by wage growth, and where Polish brands have already established a strong presence on the fashion market. All of these factors have created the perfect context for a player like 50 Style to join the other brands already present here.”

For 50 Style’s International Leasing Manager, Rafal Pierzchniak, “Romania is growing very fast and the dynamics of the market stand out from the entire CEE region. Despite the still short presence, the reception of our brands in Romania is very good, which confirms our belief that this appetite is strongly justified. Not without significance is the size of the country and valuable potential, which does not focus only on the capital, but also covers other large centres - such as Timisoara, Constanta, Cluj-Napoca, Craiova or Iasi. We also see great opportunities in smaller cities, from which the retail industry gives us positive signals about the strength of their potential. Romania is one of our development goals in the coming years, both for Sizeer and 50style. In addition, we focus on covering markets on which we are already present, including Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary.”

As part of Marketing Investment Group, 50 Style now has more than 140 stores across Poland and Lithuania. Alongside their growth into Romania, the brand has also entered Hungary in recent times. As well as 50 Style, the Polish investment group also includes Sizeer which is another sportswear chain holding numerous brands. A move into Romania seems to be a key target for the group, and Sizeer has already made progress with three stores opening all in 2018. According to reports, all three leasing transactions were recommended by Colliers International Romania and this included Parklake, Sun Plaza, and Mega Mall shopping centres.