Placek Group expands into Poland

Coming hot on the heels of its 100th shop opening in Bratislava at the end of November, the Czech family-owned Placek Group had another surprise in store at the start of 2015: its acquisition of leading Polish pet store chain Kakadu with 41 outlets nationwide means that the dynamic retailer has expanded its operations to yet another country. 
Kakadu belonged previously to Stephon Holdings Limited, a company controlled by private equity funds managed by ARX Equity Partners. Stephon Holdings invested in Kakadu in March 2009 and supported its organic expansion in the following years. In 2011, Kakadu took over the online shop Telekarma, giving it a strong position in the Polish online market for pet products. The Kakadu transaction includes the transfer of 100 per cent of the shares. 
"This is a valuable acquisition for us. Kakadu and Telekarma will benefit from Plaˇcek Holding's marketing strengths and resources," says Dusan Placek, the sole owner of Plaˇcek Holding. Wojciech Filipczyk, ex-CEO of Kakadu, has also expressed confidence in the deal, adding "I am convinced that Super Zoo will benefit from those efforts and further expand Kakadu and Telekarma. Becoming part of Plaˇcek Holding will strengthen the leading position of Kakadu in the Polish market and will allow for its further, stable development." 
Rapid growth
The development of the Plaˇcek Group is the sort of success story that isn't often encountered in the international pet supplies business. The company opened its first pilot store in 2003 and has been growing steadily ever since. It operates 32 stores with a retail area of between 200 and 500 m2 in the Czech Republic and achieved double-digit sales growth last year compared with 2013. The company occupies a strong position in the wholesale trade in central and eastern Europe, and thanks to acquisitions and its own new store openings it has also consolidated its market position in neighbouring Slovakia, where it now has 30 stores. In Slovakia the Placek Group is pursuing two different store concepts, one for small shops covering approx. 50 m2 and a concept for standard shops with a retail area of over 200 m2. The stores are located in premium shopping centres, retail parks or close to supermarkets. All outlets in the Czech Republic and Slovakia trade under the Super Zoo logo. Last year, the Placek Group recorded double-digit sales growth on a comparable store area over 2013 in Slovakia too.