REWE Group facts for kids
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A REWE grocery store in Dortmund, Germany
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| Private, cooperative joint-stock company | |
| Industry | Retailing |
| Founded | 1927 (current form 1972) |
| Headquarters |
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Germany
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Key people
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| Products |
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| Revenue | €84.4 billion (2022) |
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Number of employees
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363,633 (2019) |
The REWE Group is a large German company that runs many different stores. It's also involved in tourism. This big business is based in Cologne, Germany. The name REWE comes from a German phrase. It means "Western Buying Co-operatives Auditing Association." This shows its history as a group of businesses working together.
In 2022, the REWE Group made about €84.4 billion in sales. It is one of the biggest supermarket chains in Germany. Only EDEKA is larger.
Contents
How REWE Group Started and Grew
The REWE Group is set up as a co-operative. This means it's owned by its members, who are often independent store owners. The main company, REWE-Zentralfinanz eG, oversees everything. The daily business is handled by REWE-Zentral AG. Its international business is managed by Rewe International.
The group includes many well-known stores. These are places like Billa, Penny, and Rewe supermarkets. It also owns home improvement stores like Toom. In tourism, it has companies like DER Touristik Germany.
Early Years: 1927 to 1945
REWE started in 1927 in Cologne. It was called the Auditing Association of Westkauf Cooperatives. Its goal was to help independent store owners. They did this by buying products together. This helped them get better prices.
At first, they mostly traded things like hazelnuts and dried fruits. In the 1930s, REWE started helping stores with their look and advertising. They even introduced a special sign for all member stores in 1932.
More co-operatives joined REWE in 1935. They also set up local centers. These centers are still important to REWE's business today. By 1940, REWE had 8,000 members.
World War II made things very difficult. Goods were hard to find. Many store owners had to go to war. REWE started making some of its own products to help. Bombing raids destroyed much of their main office. This made it hard for the company to work at the end of the war.
Rebuilding and Growth: 1946 to 1972
REWE started working again in August 1945. Their main office moved back to Cologne. Germany was divided after the war. This meant REWE could only grow in West Germany and West Berlin.
In 1949, REWE introduced its first own brands. These included "Rewe Dreistern" for flour and salt. "Replica Kronjuwel" was for margarine. By 1960, REWE had over 100 member companies again.
In the 1960s and 1970s, REWE bought many other supermarkets. This helped them offer a wider range of brands and store types. In 1972, REWE introduced the way it works today. Regional co-operatives gave more control to the main REWE office. This main office became a joint-stock company. It now handles all central services and sales for the group.
What REWE Group Does
REWE Group has two main parts: trading (stores) and tourism.
Trading Stores
- REWE – A big supermarket chain in Germany. It has about 3,300 stores.
- BILLA – A supermarket chain with over 1,000 stores in Austria. It also has 400 stores in other European countries.
- Penny – A discount supermarket chain. It has 3,000 stores in Germany, Austria, and other European countries like Italy and Hungary.
- nahkauf – These are smaller, local convenience stores in Germany.
- toom BauMarkt – A chain of home improvement stores. There are 250 of these stores in Germany.
- Billa Plus – Another supermarket chain in Austria with 100 stores. It used to be called Merkur.
- BIPA – Stores that sell health and beauty products. They have 560 stores in Austria and 58 in Croatia.
- REWE Ihr Kaufpark – A supermarket chain with 120 stores in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was once known as Kaufpark.
- IKI Lietuva – A supermarket chain found in Lithuania.
Tourism and Travel
DER Touristik is the part of REWE Group that handles travel.
- Tour operator brands: These are companies that plan and sell trips. They include ITS, Jahn Reisen, Dertour, Meier’s Weltreisen, ADAC Reisen, and clevertours.com.
- Hotel brands: These are hotels owned by the group. They include lti Hotels, Club Calimera, and PrimaSol Hotels.
In June 2015, DER Touristik bought the European travel operations of Kuoni Travel.
REWE's Digital Business
In 2013, the REWE Group started a new company called REWE Digital. This company focuses on all of REWE's online activities. They bought commercetools, a company that helps build online shopping websites. They also bought ZooRoyal, a website that sells pet food and supplies.
REWE Group has invested a lot of money to make its business more digital. In 2020, REWE Digital created a new company called OC Fulfillment GmbH. This company provides software to help businesses manage online and in-store orders. In 2021, REWE Group announced Paymenttools. This company offers payment solutions for stores, both online and in person.
The Cassis de Dijon Case
In 1979, REWE won an important legal case. It was heard in the European Court of Justice. This case is known as the Cassis de Dijon case. It was about how products from one European country could be sold in another. REWE's victory helped make it easier for goods to move freely across Europe.
See also
In Spanish: REWE Group para niños
