Netto (store)
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Netto () is a Danish discount
supermarket A supermarket is a self-service Retail#Types of outlets, shop offering a wide variety of food, Drink, beverages and Household goods, household products, organized into sections. Strictly speaking, a supermarket is larger and has a wider selecti ...
brand operating in Denmark, Germany and Poland. Netto is a part of the
Salling Group Salling Group A/S (formerly Dansk Supermarked A/S) is Denmark's largest retailer, with a market share around 34%. It operates several chains of stores, including Netto, Føtex, Bilka, and Salling. Additionally, it holds franchise rights for S ...
.


History


Denmark

The first Netto store opened in
Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
, Denmark, in 1981. Initially items for sale sat in boxes and on pallets, but the chain quickly expanded and the service level increased. In 2023, there was a total of around 540 stores in Denmark, following
Aldi Aldi (German pronunciation: ), stylised as ALDI, is the common company brand name of two German multinational family-owned discount supermarket chains operating over 12,000 stores in 18 countries. The chain was founded by brothers Karl and ...
's sale of their stores in Denmark. Netto also operated a smaller, express version of the store in Denmark, known as "Døgn Netto" (" 4 hourDay Netto"). Døgn stores offered the same service as regular Netto stores but with fewer products, longer opening hours and higher prices. In 2016, all Døgn Nettos were switched to normal Netto or Føtex Food convenience concept stores.


Germany

In 1990, Netto began a process of internationalisation, and Germany became the second country to gain Netto stores. The first German store was opened in
Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (MV; ; ), also known by its Anglicisation, anglicized name Mecklenburg–Western Pomerania, is a Federated state, state in the north-east of Germany. Of the country's States of Germany, sixteen states, Mecklenburg-Vorpom ...
, at that time part of
East Germany East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...
. Netto has since expanded in the states of
Brandenburg Brandenburg, officially the State of Brandenburg, is a States of Germany, state in northeastern Germany. Brandenburg borders Poland and the states of Berlin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony. It is the List of Ger ...
,
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
,
Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...
,
Lower Saxony Lower Saxony is a States of Germany, German state (') in Northern Germany, northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ' of the Germany, Federal Re ...
,
Saxony Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...
,
Saxony-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt ( ; ) is a States of Germany, state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of and has a population of 2.17 million inhabitants, making it the List of German states ...
and
Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein (; ; ; ; ; occasionally in English ''Sleswick-Holsatia'') is the Northern Germany, northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical Duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of S ...
, and there were more than 340 stores in Germany as at the end of 2014. Within Germany, there is a larger chain, of more than 4,100 stores, also called "Netto" for short,
Netto Marken-Discount Netto Marken-Discount (also known as just Netto, formerly Plus) is a German discount supermarket chain owned by the German supermarket cooperative Edeka Group, and operates mostly in the south and west of Germany. The company reached its 1000 ...
, which is owned by
EDEKA The Edeka Group is the largest German supermarket corporation , holding a market share of 25.3%. Founded in 1907, it currently consists of several co-operatives of independent supermarkets, all operating under the umbrella organisation ''Edeka ...
and has been in operation since 1984. The two chains are not related.


Poland

The first Netto store in Poland opened in
Szczecin Szczecin ( , , ; ; ; or ) is the capital city, capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the Poland-Germany border, German border, it is a major port, seaport, the la ...
in 1995. The company's expansion in Poland is concentrated in the west part of the country from Szczecin to
Gdańsk Gdańsk is a city on the Baltic Sea, Baltic coast of northern Poland, and the capital of the Pomeranian Voivodeship. With a population of 486,492, Data for territorial unit 2261000. it is Poland's sixth-largest city and principal seaport. Gdań ...
(for example in
Police The police are Law enforcement organization, a constituted body of Law enforcement officer, people empowered by a State (polity), state with the aim of Law enforcement, enforcing the law and protecting the Public order policing, public order ...
and
Stargard Szczeciński Stargard (; 1945: ''Starogród'', 1950–2016: ''Stargard Szczeciński''; or ''Stargard an der Ihna''; ) is a city in northwestern Poland, located in the West Pomeranian Voivodeship. In 2021 it was inhabited by 67,293 people. It is situated on ...
), and through the country to
Bydgoszcz Bydgoszcz is a city in northern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Kuyavia. Straddling the confluence of the Vistula River and its bank (geography), left-bank tributary, the Brda (river), Brda, the strategic location of Byd ...
,
Poznań Poznań ( ) is a city on the Warta, River Warta in west Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business center and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint John's ...
, and
Zielona Góra Zielona Góra (; ''Green Mountain''; ) is the largest city in Lubusz Voivodeship, located in western Poland, with 140,403 inhabitants (). The region is closely associated with vineyards and holds an annual Zielona Góra Wine Fest, Wine Fest. Zie ...
. In 2020, Netto made a substantial expansion by acquiring Polish subsidiary of
Tesco Tesco plc () is a British multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in the United Kingdom at its head offices in Welwyn Garden City, England. The company was founded by Jack Cohen (businessman), Sir Jack Cohen in ...
with 301 supermarkets and two logistics centers for £181 million. Of these stores, 243 were rebranded as Netto, while the remaining 58 were closed.


Sweden

The Swedish part of Netto was founded in 2002 as a
joint venture A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four reasons: to acce ...
between Dansk Supermarked and ICA, called Netto Marknad AB. The co-operation was approved by the
European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the primary Executive (government), executive arm of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with a number of European Commissioner, members of the Commission (directorial system, informall ...
in 2001. The headquarters were established in
Halmstad Halmstad () is a port, university, industrial and recreational urban areas of Sweden, city at the mouth of the Nissan (river), Nissan river, in the provinces of Sweden, province of Halland on the Sweden, Swedish west coast. Halmstad is the seat ...
in 2002 and the first store opened in
Trelleborg Trelleborg () is a town in Skåne County, Sweden, with 43,359 inhabitants as of 31 December 2015. It is the southernmost town in Sweden located some west from the Smygehuk, southernmost point of Sweden and the Scandinavian Peninsula. It is one ...
on 8 May that year. A week later, two stores were opened in Lund. Initially, Netto were based solely in the
Götaland Götaland (; also '' Gothia'', ''Gothland'', ''Gothenland'' or ''Gautland'') is one of three lands of Sweden and comprises ten provinces. Geographically it is located in the south of Sweden, bounded to the north by Svealand, with the deep wo ...
region but in 2004 opened their first stores in
Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...
. In 2003, the head office moved to
Falkenberg Falkenberg is a locality and the seat of Falkenberg Municipality, Halland County, Sweden, with 27,813 inhabitants in 2019 (out of a municipal total of about 45,000). It is located at the mouth of river Ätran. The name consists of the Swedish ...
, by which time there were 28 stores in the country. As of 2019, this had risen to 163. In 2006, ICA announced it was pulling out of the joint venture and reducing its stake from 50% to 5%; today, ICA no longer has any stake in the company. Some 21 stores in the Stockholm and Västerås regions transferred to ICA ownership with most being rebranded to ICA's own formats in 2007. The reasons for the change were problems in supplying the stores based on Netto's more southern base as well as ICA's desire to focus investment on its own formats. On 10 May 2019, it was announced that Salling Group had signed an agreement with the country's second-largest supermarket chain Coop Sverige on the purchase of the 163 Netto supermarkets in Sweden.


United Kingdom

Netto began operating in the UK in
Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...
on 13 December 1990, with the company's UK headquarters located in the town of
South Elmsall South Elmsall ( ) is a town and civil parish in the City of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, England. South Elmsall lies to the east of Hemsworth. The town had a population in 2001 of 6,107, increasing to 6,519 at the 2011 Census. History The tow ...
,
West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a Metropolitan counties of England, metropolitan and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and east, South Yorkshire and De ...
. Netto primarily expanded in central England, before moving into
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
. In 2005, plans for a £2 million investment in
South Wales South Wales ( ) is a Regions of Wales, loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the Historic counties of Wales, historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire ( ...
were announced, only to be cancelled due to logistical issues, which resulted in the sale of stores in
Barry Barry may refer to: People and fictional characters * Barry (name), including lists of people with the given name, nickname or surname, as well as fictional characters with the given name * Dancing Barry, stage name of Barry Richards (born c. 195 ...
and
Caerphilly Caerphilly (, ; , ) is a town and community (Wales), community in Wales. It is situated at the southern end of the Rhymney Valley and separated from the Cardiff suburbs of Lisvane and Rhiwbina by Caerphilly Mountain. It is north of Cardiff an ...
. 1,700 jobs were promised in the expansion, with only a small number actually being created. In 2010, Netto UK was sold to
Asda Asda Stores Limited (), trading as Asda and often styled as ASDA, is a British supermarket and petrol station chain. Its headquarters is in Leeds, England. The company was incorporated as Associated Dairies and Farm Stores in 1949. It expanded ...
for £778 million to help Asda increase its smaller store portfolio. The rebranding of 147 former Netto stores under the Asda brand was completed in late 2011. Competition laws required Asda to sell the remaining 47 stores to other companies, such as
Morrisons Wm Morrison Supermarkets Limited, trading as Morrisons, is the List of supermarket chains in the United Kingdom, fifth largest supermarket chain in the United Kingdom. As of 2021, the company had 497 supermarkets across England, Wales and Sco ...
, new convenience store UGO, and other retailers. In 2014,
Dansk Supermarked Salling Group A/S (formerly Dansk Supermarked A/S) is Denmark's largest retailer, with a market share around 34%. It operates several chains of stores, including Netto, Føtex, Bilka, and Salling. Additionally, it holds franchise rights for S ...
returned Netto to the UK as a 50:50 joint venture with
Sainsbury's J Sainsbury plc, trading as Sainsbury's, is a British supermarket and the second-largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1869 by John James Sainsbury with a shop in Drury Lane, London, the company was the largest UK r ...
. Plans called for one store to be combined with a Sainsbury's. In 2016, the two companies announced they were ending the joint venture and closing the stores.
Mike Coupe Michael Andrew Coupe (born 26 September 1960) is a British businessman who was the CEO of J Sainsbury plc, parent company of the supermarket chain Sainsbury's, from July 2014 until the end of May 2020. Early life Coupe was born in Watford, He ...
, chief executive, said: "we have made the difficult decision not to pursue the (Netto) opportunity further, and instead focus on our core business and on the opportunities we will have, following our proposed acquisition of
Home Retail Group Home Retail Group plc was a British retail company established on 10 October 2006, following the spin-off of GUS (retailer)#Other retail and manufacturing growth, Argos Retail Group (ARG) from GUS (retailer), GUS plc. It was listed on the Londo ...
".


Other countries

The Netto name is also used in other countries, such as
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
and
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
, but these stores are independent of the Scandinavian Netto. The Spanish Netto is a chain of
convenience store A convenience store, convenience shop, bakkal, bodega, corner store, corner shop, superette or mini-mart is a small retail store that stocks a range of everyday items such as convenience food, groceries, beverages, tobacco products, lotter ...
s owned by DinoSol, and the French Netto is a discount chain owned by
Les Mousquetaires Les Mousquetaires, known as in Portugal, is a privately owned retailing symbol group based in France and operating internationally. Its head office is in Bondoufle, France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located prima ...
.


Geographic coverage

List of Netto supermarket chains as of 2024.


References


External links


Netto Denmark

Netto Germany

Netto Poland

Netto Sweden
(archive)
Netto UK
(archive) {{DEFAULTSORT:Netto (Store) Retail companies established in 1981 Supermarkets of Denmark Discount stores Danish brands Companies based in Køge Municipality Multinational companies headquartered in Denmark Dansk Supermarked