On 28 November 2006 Fozzy Group announced the launch of “Premiya” Private Label (PL) range of products. During the first stage of the launch, November-December 2006, the company will introduce 90 SKU’s (food) in the middle price tier. The distribution centers owned by Fozzy Group enable the company to launch its PL range of products almost simultaneously in all of its “Silpo”, “Fora” and “Fozzy” stores throughout Ukraine.

Vladimir Kostelman, President of Fozzy Group Corporation: “in the process of a product’s pricing there is a number of elements that may be influenced through introduction of PL. Apart from eliminating the middlemen (distribution companies) from this process, a substantial saving is made due to elimination of the promotion, advertising and other related costs that are included in the pricing of traditional brand products. Another important fact is that the producers of our PL products are selected though a tender.

The leading international business simulation STOREWARS has taken place in Ukraine this year. Fozzy Group team has become a winner of this battle. “We win and set up the new world record: we got 58 mln of accumulated EVA in 4 days (the previous record was done in UK in 2005 at 54 min)”, - says Suren Iskandaryan, team CEO, a head of strategic contracts departmens of Fozzy Group.

“It’s always a pleasure & most interesting thing for me both in a game & in real life – to deal with the top professionals, who know the customer, the competitors, and who can take non-standart decisions in a complex competitive environment”, - says Oleg Anufriev, IMSG Director, STOREWARS facilitator. – “The menegement quality and professional personnel of Fozzy Group has confirmed once again that the Company is ready to complete with the world leading retailers”.

Valeriy Vlasenko, the Director of the Silpo retail chain summeriesed: “At the end of 2005 we account 81 stores in our Silpo chain. Therefore, in 2005 we opened 28 new Silpo stores and further strengthened our leading position on the market. The annual turnover of the chain became twice as much as the one in 2004. I consider such significant growth as considerable development of the company and the Ukrainian retail market as a whole. Our emphasis in development is still on the regions expansion. In 2005 the Silpo stores were opened in Odessa, Kharkov, Vinnitsa, Rovno, Khmelnitskiy, Cherkassy, Ivano-Frankovsk, as well as in the smaller Kremenchug, Krivoy Rog, Khmelnik, K’erch. This rapid growth was achieved thanks to the perfectly coordinated work of all the members of the team: from the selling staff to our top-management. In our 2006 year plans is keeping up to the current double-growth rate”.

On 23 April 2005 Fozzy Group is opening its third hypermarket Fozzy. This wholesale hypermarket is situated near Borispol highway instead of the ex-wholesale market “Maksi”. This wholesale hypermarket Fozzy will have 8000 sq.m. trade area (total area 10 000 sq.m.), about 50 000 articles of goods, 30 till places and about 300 parking places.

Aleksandr Bondarev, the Chief Director of the wholesale hypermarket chain Fozzy, pointed out: “We are opening a store of the largest retail format. We hope that our customers appreciate our low prices, high quality of goods and service, the assortment will also be of a pleasant surprise”.

“We are happy with our retail chains development pace and continue to be the market leader” – said Vladimir Kostelman, the President of the Fozzy Group. In 2004 the trade turnover of the Fozzy Group (Silpo, Fora, Fozzy, Dnepryanka) amounted 290 million US dollars. This is 110 million dollars more than in 2003. In 2007 our retail chain Silpo will grow to over 100 stores, the annual turnover will exceed 1 billion US dollars.

“The ordinary Ukrainian customer prefers doing their shopping in supermarkets, rather than markets, although the “civilized trade” possesses a relatively small market share. We will do everything to provide our customers with quality goods at low prices, followed by high quality service and new technologies”, said Vladimir Kostelman.

In 2004 a tender is announced for exclusive right to rent extra sales areas in the shopping centres Silpo (in the near-tills areas and second floors).

The retail chain Silpo wishes to offer its customers the best service and convenience. We want to make our stores shopping centres, in particular those with second floors. There will be offered standard quality services, such as dry cleaning, bank branches, mobile dealer shops, etc.