- METRO AG has taken the decision to cease its business activities in Kazakhstan by the end of March 2027
- This decision follows a focused review of the long-term prospects of METRO’s business in Kazakhstan
- Persistent challenges have restricted METRO Kazakhstan’s prospects of creating a strong foundation for sustainable growth
METRO AG has taken the decision to cease its business activities in the Republic of Kazakhstan by end of March 2027. In consequence, all 6 stores and the delivery operations of METRO Kazakhstan will be closed in a phased approach.
This decision follows a focused review of the long-term prospects of METRO’s business in Kazakhstan over the past months. Despite significant efforts of the local team to strengthen METRO Kazakhstan’s value proposition and adapt its wholesale operations to the local market landscape, the business continued to face challenges in creating a strong foundation for sustainable growth.
“This is an exceptionally difficult moment for everyone at METRO Kazakhstan,” said Mesut Dogukan, CEO of METRO Kazakhstan. “We are proud of what our colleagues have accomplished over the past seventeen years. I would like to thank all our employees for their longstanding efforts and commitment – as much as I would like to thank our business partners and public authorities for their continuous trust, collaboration and support over the many years of METRO’s presence in Kazakhstan. Our priority now is to manage this process responsibly and respectfully for our 650 employees as well as for our customers and suppliers, who rely on METRO Kazakhstan.”
METRO entered Kazakhstan in October 2009 as the first international wholesale company, marking an important milestone for European investment and the modernisation of trade infrastructure in the country. Since then, METRO has invested substantially in its store network, logistics, supply chain, workforce, and commercial partnerships. Over the past years, METRO Kazakhstan has sharpened its profile as a partner for hospitality businesses and traders.
Accordingly, the company has expanded its delivery operations to enhance its wholesale capabilities. Despite these efforts, METRO Kazakhstan continued to face challenges in building a growth perspective, which sustains in a specialised food wholesale market with a geographically dispersed customer base.
METRO Kazakhstan will make every effort to support its employees throughout the transition in a fair and respectful manner and in full compliance with all applicable labour law requirements. At the same time, the local management team will ensure that all forthcoming steps are implemented responsibly towards customers, business partners and other stakeholders over the coming months.
METRO is a leading international food wholesaler which specialises in serving the needs of hotels, restaurants, and caterers (HoReCa) as well as independent merchants (Traders). Around the world, METRO has approx. 15 million customers who benefit from the wholesale company’s unique multichannel mix: customers can purchase their goods in one of the large stores in their area as well as by delivery (Food Service Distribution, FSD) – all digitally supported and connected. Parallel to this, the subsidiary METRO MARKETS operates an international online marketplace tailored to the needs of professional customers, which has been growing and expanding steadily since 2019. Acting sustainably is one of the company principles of METRO which has been listed in various sustainability indices and rankings, including MSCI, Sustainalytics and CDP. METRO operates in over 30 countries and employs more than 84,000 people worldwide. In the 2024/25 financial year, METRO generated sales of €32.4 billion.
Фото / Photo: Metro
Источник / Дереккөз / Source: Metro
