Mediaworld focuses on private label products and in Italy creates Imtron, a company dedicated to the development of these lines to bring them closer to the tastes, needs and characteristics of the local market. This is not a leap forward from the German parent company Mediamarkt (holding Ceconomy) which has so far centralized the development of the various devices under its own brand in Germany. «Today the new course of the private label relies on Italian skills for the design and planning of products which in the first phase will be sold in Italy and then abroad – anticipates Guido Monferrini, CEO of Mediaworld Italy and former Executive Deputy to Il Sole 24 Ore president of MediaMarktSaturn Retail Group, Chief real estate & store concepts officer and since the end of January also Chief operating officer for Austria, Switzerland, Hungary, Sweden and Italy -. Imtron Italia’s goal is to reach around 150 million in revenues within three years, 5% of Mediaworld Italia’s turnover. This new strategy is also being implemented in Spain at the same time».
There are four private labels: Peaq (consumer electronics), Isy (accessories for smartphones), Koenic (household appliances) and Ok (first price) and their positioning will see them increasingly dominate the first and medium price range -low market with small household appliances, hi-fi and speaker systems, smartphone and home accessories with prices 25-30% lower than the products of the leading brands. Production is entrusted to Asian, Eastern European and North African partners while Mediaworld Italy will handle the direct import. The high end of the market will be covered, as always, with the offer of the giants of consumer electronics and household appliances. Among the private brands developed in Italy there is also Barista club, an Italian coffee now sold in Mediamarkt stores in Europe.
As for 2022, Mediaworld Italy records a turnover of 2.7 billion with a +2.4% on the previous year. «We have gained market shares both in the traditional retail channel with +1.5% and in the online channel with +0.9% – Monferrini points out -. The 2023 budget aims for +5% also linked to the increase in inflation but from the signals emerging from the first weeks of the new year it seems that the consumer electronics and household appliances market is slowing down». This year, 35 million investments are planned for the renovation of 13 points of sale and the opening of a dozen stores with the hiring of around 200 employees. In terms of e-commerce, a process transformation plan was also launched which provides for the creation of a general warehouse, a platform where the products are available on the shelves of all the points of sale. A move that should eliminate all the differences between online and traditional sales by halving customer delivery times and improving stock management.