Lidl to Increase the Number of its Stores in Hungary

Lidl Hungary would increase the number of its Hungarian stores from the current 210 to 250 in the next few years, with the chain opening its newest store in the capital's agglomeration, the chairman of the board of Lidl Hungary, Zita Szlavikovics has said at a press conference in Budapest.

Speaking at the event organized to mark the 20th anniversary of Lidl's activities in Hungary, she said that besides Budapest, Lidl stores can now be found in all counties and cities.

The Hungarian stores are supplied from four logistics centers, and the foundation stone has already been laid for the fifth center, which will be built in Kiskunfélegyháza with HUF 50 billion. The latter logistics center is scheduled to open in 2026, he said.

He pointed out that Lidl is the ninth largest employer in the country with 9,500 employees. The number of purchases at the supermarket chain will reach 180 million this year.

Taking into account the 4,000 households, he said Lidl's market share in Hungary was 20.8% in September this year, according to a survey by market researcher GfK.

Lidl is part of the Schwarz group, which gives it a presence in Europe and North America with 13,900 stores in 32 countries. As a result, if a Hungarian supplier meets the requirements of the supermarket chain, it will have the opportunity to open up to Lidl's export markets in 32 countries.

Zita Szlavikovics pointed out that while in 2016 Lidl exported EUR 24 million worth of products from Hungarian suppliers to foreign markets, last year the value of the products was EUR 338.2 million.

She also said that in the past five years, the gross added value generated by Lidl exceeded HUF 1,200 billion.

Zoltán Nepp, Lidl Hungary's managing director of purchasing, said that the number of Lidl's suppliers in Hungary had increased by 73% in 10 years to 487, accounting for 61% of the chain's supply. According to publicly available company data, Lidl Hungary had net sales of HUF 1,159.23 billion in the financial year from March 1, 2023 to February 29, 2024, compared to HUF 973.53 billion a year earlier. Last year, the company closed with a profit of HUF 26.8 billion, while a year earlier its profit after tax was HUF 25.28 billion.