Metro AG
 | |
| Aktiengesellschaft | |
| Traded as | FWB: MEO |
| Industry | Retailing |
| Founded | 1964; Metro AG formed in 1996 |
| Headquarters | Düsseldorf, Germany |
Area served | Europe, Asia, Africa |
Key people |
|
| Products | Cash & Carry/warehouse club, department store, electronics specialty, hypermarket/supercenter/superstore, other specialty |
| Revenue |
 €66.739 billion (2012)[1] |
|
€2.113 billion (2012)[1] | |
| Profit |
€741 million (2012)[1] |
| Total assets |
€34.766 billion (2012)[1] |
| Total equity |
€6.101 billion (2012)[1] |
Number of employees | 244,601 (2012)[1] |
| Divisions | Metro Cash and Carry, Real, Media Markt & Saturn, Galeria Kaufhof |
| Website | www.metrogroup.de |
Metro AG, otherwise known as Metro Group, is a German global diversified retail and wholesale/cash and carry group based in Düsseldorf.[2] It has the largest market share in its home market, and is one of the most globalised retail and wholesale corporations. It is the fifth-largest retailer in the world measured by revenues (after Wal-Mart, Carrefour, Tesco and Kroger).[3] It was established in 1964 by Otto Beisheim.
Sales divisions
The company operates the following sales divisions:
- Metro and Makro Cash and Carry (Makro stores in the United Kingdom and elsewhere in Europe were acquired from SHV Holdings in 1998): This division accounts for nearly half of group sales as of 2004, and is by far the most internationalised division, with stores in almost every country in which the group operates.
- Real: A hypermarket operator. 265 stores in Germany and 34 elsewhere as of early 2005.
- Media Markt and Saturn: Media Markt and Saturn are consumer electronics stores in Germany and several other European countries.
- Galeria Kaufhof: A department store chain with locations in Germany and Belgium ("Inno").
As of 2007 it has added the former Wal-Mart Germany stores to the Real chain.
International presence
As of 2012, the Metro Group operated stores in 25 European countries, 5 Asian countries, and 1 in Africa.
Recent news
In June 2009 it was reported that the company was looking to purchase some of the assets of Arcandor, after the firm filed for bankruptcy.[2]↵
They split off and floated their Praktiker division in December 2006, a DIY/home improvement chain with stores in several countries.
In 2012, the company threatened Microsoft with legal action for infringing on "Metro" trademarks held by Metro AG. "Metro" had been the name of Microsoft's new "Windows 8-style" user interface.[4]
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 "Annual Report 2011" (PDF). Metro AG. Retrieved 20 October 2011.
- ↑ "Directions." Metro AG. Retrieved on 2 August 2014. "Metro-Strasse 1 40235 Düsseldorf Germany"
- ↑ Delotte, Switching Channels: Global Powers of Retailing 2012, January 2012, at p. G11.
- ↑ Sources claim that German retailer Metro AG is unhappy with Redmond. arstechnica.com. 2 August 2012
External links
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