Valora (company)

History

Valora goes back to the Schweizer Chocoladen & Colonialhaus, which was founded in Olten, Switzerland in 1905, which later became known as Merkur AG. In 1986, Merkur AG was made into a holding company, Merkur Holding AG, and in 1996, the company was renamed to today's Valora Holding AG.

General

Valora operates on a Europe-wide scale in three business areas (Retail, Services and Trade).

In small-outlet retail, the Group’s Valora Retail division operates through four brand names k kiosk, avec., Caffè Spettacolo and Presse und Buch (in English, press and books). Valora Media runs the Group’s press distribution business, while Valora Trade is a distributor of fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG).

In its 2009 financial year, Valora generated some 3 billion Swiss francs in turnover and employed some 6,500 staff (on a full-time equivalent basis).

Valora Retail

Valora Retail runs a Europe-wide network of kiosks and other small-outlet retail units located at heavily frequented sites. The division distributes press products, consumer staples and items for the impulse purchase market.

Valora Retail operates kiosk and railway station bookstores in Switzerland, Germany and Luxembourg. The product range on offer encompasses press titles, tobacco products, food and non-food items, as well as services. In Switzerland, its domestic market, Valora Retail operates a network of more than 1,000 k kiosk outlets throughout the country. In Luxembourg, the division operates some 80 kiosks, selling newspapers, magazines, books, tobacco products, convenience articles, lottery tickets and phone cards. These outlets are run under the k presse + buch and k bookstore banners. In 2009, two shops using this same concept were also opened in Switzerland.

In more than 100 avec. outlets in Switzerland and the first avec. German unit grocery and impulse purchase items are available after the usual shop closing times. The focus here is on essential supermarket items. Besides fresh produce, a range of private label and branded goods is on offer, as are a variety of kiosk articles.

Caffè Spettacolo flogs Italian coffee.

Valora Services

The Valora Services division is a distributor of international press products and books. Its logistics system not only supplies media products to Valora Retail’s 1,430 or so outlets, but to third party customers in Switzerland, Austria and Luxembourg as well.

In Switzerland, the division is the largest independent media distributor offering international press and book products. Valora Services links publishers to their retail customers in German- and Italian-speaking Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Austria and Luxembourg. The services it provides include picking, sorting and packing, distribution and sales promotion.

In 2014, Valora sold Valora Services to Thomas Kirschner, the majority shareholder of Presse-Vertriebs-Gesellschaft.

Valora Trade

The Valora Trade Division is a distribution organisation of third party brands (among others Ferrero and Kellogg’s) in the Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) area, with distribution channels in retail and wholesale trade, food service, drugstores, pharmacies and perfumeries. The network of Valora Trade comprises seven countries (DACH countries: Valora Trade Austria, Valora Trade Germany and Valora Trade Switzerland; Nordic countries: Valora Trade Denmark, Valora Trade Finland, Valora Trade Norway and Valora Trade Sweden). Included in the distribution services of Valora Trade are key account management, principal account management/ trade marketing, field service and supply chain logistics. Valora Trade took over Engelschiøn Marwell Hauge AS (EMH) in 2010 and thus opened up the sales and distribution of cosmetic products in Norway. In 2011, Valora Trade took over Scandinavian Cosmetics (ScanCo) and thus acquired access to cosmetic distribution in Sweden.

Ditsch / Brezelkönig

In 2012, Valora has acquired the Ditsch / Brezelkönig group of companies, a leader in producing and selling lye-bread specialities.