Egypt's number one retail chain, Metro, is opening its 51st store in Cairo on 11th of April. The new store is strategically located within Cairo's city center opposite the national zoo in Giza. Given the busy location of the new store, it will be opening 24 hours/day, 7 days/week and will provide the full range of Metro's renowned services including, home delivery. The store is being opened in response to increased demands by residents in the “Giza" area for a Metro outlet to serve them. The opening comes as part of Metro's overall strategy of expanding its existing network to be conveniently close to all its customers. Mohanad Adly -Managing Director of Metro-"Our primary objective is to provide maximum convenience to our shoppers,". He added "We will continue to expand our chain in a carefully planned manner to be as close as we could possibly be to all our customers. It is important that our stores be easily accessible by everyone." The new store is one of Metro's midsize outlets with 800 square meters of shop floor and another 150 square meters for storage and food preparation. More than 15,000 products will be displayed on the grocery shelves and in the fridges that have been imported directly from Italy to ensure the freshness of the fruits & vegetables as well as the meat and deli sections. The staff of 75 employees has been training over the past two months in keeping Metro's famous produce fresh in cool hygienic conditions. In January, Metro opened another new store in Sheikh Zayed. Metro's total workforce reached 6,000 dedicated employees who work to serve more than 100,000 customers on a daily basis. The company is expanding rapidly across Egypt. The next planned opening will be in Dokki in July. Four additional stores will be opening before the end of the year, including a new store in Alexandria. By the end of 2012, Metro will have added seven new shops to its network bringing it to a total of 56 stores stretching over seven different cities across the country, as AMEinfo stated "We always strive to provide outstanding service and maximum convenience to our customers," said Adly. "Our vast network of stores ensures that we are able to maintain this important competitive advantage over the rest of the market." Metro Markets is also the parent company of the discount store chain, Kheir Zaman. The chain was launched in July 2007 to serve lower income target groups. Today Kheir Zaman has expanded quickly to a network of 32 stores in Cairo, Alexandria, Port Said, Mansoura, Hurghada & Luxor. Four new stores are planned before the end of 2012 including in Assiut for the first time. Together, Metro and Kheir Zaman will reach 92 stores before the end of 2012, making it the largest food retail network in Egypt.
