Opening of the new K-rauta in Kaluga was a success

Rautakesko Ltd Press release 07.04.2010 at 10.30

Rautakesko opened its 12th K-rauta in Russia on Saturday, April 3 in Kaluga. It is estimated that the new store was visited by over 15,000 customers during the first days.

Kaluga is a rapidly developing industrial town of some 350,000 inhabitants and the administrative centre of the region on the Oka River, about 200 kilometres southwest of Moscow. Kaluga is also an important centre of the automotive industry.

The new store was opened by Nikolai Ljubimov, Kaluga Mayor, and Mikko Pasanen, Rautakesko's Country Director for Russia.

In his opening speech, Mayor Nikolai Ljubimov thanked Rautakesko for enhancing the retailing of building supplies in Kaluga. He believes that Kaluga's inhabitants value the wide selection and good availability of goods at competitive prices at K-rauta. He is also sure that new kinds of services, such as the design service, will arouse much interest. Ljubimov hopes the example set by Rautakesko will also encourage other Finnish companies to invest in the Kaluga region.

K-rauta Kaluga is the third store of the chain in Moscow's catchment area. The first one was opened in Jaroslavl in spring 2009. Rautakesko has nine K-rauta stores in the St. Petersburg area.

"As K-rauta has succeeded well in St. Petersburg, we have every reason to believe in our success in the Moscow area, too. The new store in Kaluga is a modern, diversified and service-oriented department store which offers building, interior decoration and gardening supplies to all customers. Our most important competitive asset is high-quality customer service," says Mikko Pasanen.

K-rauta Kaluga in figures:

·        Total area 16,000 m²

·        Indoor sales area 6,500 m²

·        Outdoor sales area 10,000 m², of which 3,500 m² are covered

The store has a selection of more than 30,000 building, interior decoration and gardening items. The large number of decor solutions and in-store displays help customers in idea generation, planning and decision making. Besides design and installation services, the store also provides customers with a wide range of other services, including home delivery on the day of purchase.

Pictures of the store can be downloaded at http://aineistopankki.kesko.fi.

Further information:
Country Director Mikko Pasanen, Rautakesko Ltd, tel. +358 40 743 6665
Managing Director Jouni Paasirova, ZAO Masterstroyprof, tel. +7 925 502 4625

K-rauta stores (www.k-rauta.com) meet the customer demand for safe ideas and solutions for building and living. K-rauta stores operate in the Nordic and Baltic countries, and Russia.

Kesko (www.kesko.fi) is a retail specialist whose stores offer quality to the daily lives of consumers. Kesko has about 2,000 stores engaged in chain operations in the Nordic and Baltic countries, Russia, and Belarus.