Rautakirja strengthens its position in the Russian press retail by acquiring 100% of a Russian kiosk company OOO KP Roznitsa from the private persons holding the shares. The deal was finalised on 28 March 2008.
KP Roznitsa operates 89 kiosks in the Rostov region in Southern Russia. Rostov is one of the rapidly developing cities in Russia with a population of more than one million. In 2007, the company's net sales were some EUR 2 million.
"Rautakirja wants to be part of the modern kiosk business in Russia. With this acquisition, we will have nearly 200 kiosks in Russia. This means that we are one step closer to our aim of becoming a major player in press distribution and kiosk operations in the biggest cities of the country," comments Erkki Järvinen, President and CEO of Rautakirja.
Rautakirja already operates the press distribution company Pressexpo and the kiosk and convenience retail company R-kiosk in Russia. In August 2007, Rautakirja acquired the press distributor Press Point International and the kiosk operator HDS CIS.
Rautakirja is a retail specialist whose business is based on a thorough understanding of the consumers' needs and strong concepts. Rautakirja's success is built on over 200 million annual sales contacts, in which the consumer is present at a kiosk, bookstore or movie theatre. Rautakirja is part of the SanomaWSOY Group, a strong European media group operating in diverse fields of media in more than 20 countries.