Düsseldorf, Germany, 2014-2-25 — /EPR Retail News/ — With Axel Hluchy (49), METRO Cash & Carry Germany is getting a new managing director. Effective beginning of April, the wholesale professional will take over from Dominique Minnaert who will assume another position within METRO GROUP for health reasons.
Hluchy is presently Managing Director of MAKRO Cash & Carry Czech Republic andMETRO Cash & Carry Slovakia. The graduated economist joined METRO AG in 1997 and was first responsible for introducing the International Accounting Standards (IAS) across the Düsseldorf-based retailing group. In 2000, he took over the position of Director Finance METRO Cash & Carry Bulgaria and in 2002 he assumed the position of Managing Director of the newly founded subsidiaryMETRO Cash & Carry Ukraine. The Rhineland-born held this position for around six years and was responsible for the establishment and expansion of activities in this Eastern European country.
“With Axel Hluchy, an experienced and highly successful wholesale manager is taking over the lead of METRO Cash & Carry Germany in order to continue advancing the repositioning of the company”, said Olaf Koch, Chairman of the Management Board of METRO AG. “Axel Hluchy has led our Cash & Carry business to great success, both in a growth country and also in a mature market. We are pleased that he is now contributing his expertise in Germany”.
The previous Managing Director of METRO Cash & Carry Germany, Dominique Minnaert, will in future coordinate the international expansion of the wholesale activities at METRO GROUP. “We regret that we are losing Dominique Minnaert as the head of our German activities, on the one hand, but we fully understand that he wants to pursue another activity for health reasons”, stressed Koch. “Dominique Minnaert did an outstanding job and set the course for the realignment of the German wholesale business. In the name of the Management Board ofMETRO AG and also of the Supervisory Board of METRO Cash & Carry Germany we would like to warmly thank Dominique Minnaert for his achievements”.
The decision is still subject to approvals by the relevant boards.
METRO GROUP is one of the largest and most important international retailing companies. During the financial year 2012/13 (pro forma), it generated sales of about €66 billion. The company operates around 2,200 stores in 32 countries and has a headcount of around 265,000 employees. The performance of METRO GROUP is based on the strength of its sales brands that operate independently in their respective market segments:METRO/MAKRO Cash & Carry – the international leader in self-service wholesale – Media Marktand Saturn – the European market leader in consumer electronics retailing – Real hypermarkets and Galeria Kaufhof department stores.
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