O'key Regs Regulatory News (OKEY)

10 July 2017O'KEY GROUP ANNOUNCES APPOINTMENT OF COMMERCIAL OPERATIONS DIRECTOR OF HYPERMARKET AND SUPERMARKET BUSINESS O'KEY Group S.A. (LSE: OKEY, the "Group"), one of the leading Russian food retailers, announces the appointment of Ivan Dropuljic as Commercial Operations Director for the hypermarket and supermarket business.All materials published by the Group are available on its website www.okeyinvestors.ru.In the role of Commercial Operations Director, Mr. Dropuljic will combine under his management the Commercial Department of the hypermarket and supermarket business, Marketing, Space Management and Quality Control. Mr. Dropuljic is expected to commence his work upon receipt of all the necessary work permission documents. In his new role, he will be primarily focused on strategic and trade marketing, standardization and optimization of portfolio assortment and quality control, to support O'KEY's strategic transition towards the compact hypermarket format.Ivan Dropuljic, 37, has a long track record in the food retail industry. Since 2012, he has been Purchasing and Marketing Director and Member of the Board of Kaufland Croatia, one of the leading hypermarket chains in Europe (part of Schwartz Group, a grocery retailer with more than US$100bn in revenues), where during the last two years he was responsible for diverse international projects. Prior to that, he worked as Fresh Food Director at Kaufland Croatia where he achieved success in purchasing process optimization, which enabled the company to double its sales. Prior to that, up to 2007, Mr. Dropuljic held various positions at Pik Vrbovec and Jamnica. Mr. Dropuljic holds an MA degree in Economics from the University of Zagreb. He speaks Croatian, English, German, and Polish.Miodrag Borojević, Chief Executive Officer of O'KEY Group, said: "We are pleased to welcome Ivan Dropuljic to the management team. The Russian market is characterized by strong competition and high pace of growth which are driving our strategic transition. I strongly believe that optimization of processes and focus on the key aspects of our business, which Ivan will play a key role in, will enable us to complete our strategic transition in a timely manner and become a trendsetter in our market."Ivan Dropuljic commented: "I am very excited to be joining O'KEY Group. I see enormous potential for the Company's future business development given its unique customer value proposition and strong team of retail professionals. I believe that standardization of assortment portfolio and marketing mix, along with the modern and efficient supply chain, will enable us to meet the needs of existing customers and increase traffic across our retail chain."COMPANY OVERVIEWO'KEY is one of the largest retail chains in Russia. Its primary retail format is the modern Western European style hypermarket which operates under the "O'KEY" brand, complemented by O'KEY supermarkets. The Group is developing an innovative discounter format under the "DA!" brand. O'KEY is the first among Russian food retailers to launch e-commerce operations in St. Petersburg and Moscow, based on its hypermarket assortment.The Group opened its first hypermarket in St. Petersburg in 2002 and has since demonstrated continuous growth. As of July 10, 2017, O'KEY operates 109 stores across Russia - 72 hypermarkets, 37 supermarkets and 55 discounters under the "DA!" brand. ______________________________________________________________________________ DisclaimerThese materials contain statements about future events and expectations that are forward-looking statements. These statements typically contain words such as "expects" and "anticipates" and words of similar import. Any statement in these materials that is not a statement of historical fact is a forward-looking statement that involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. None of the future projections, expectations, estimates or prospects in this announcement should be taken as forecasts or promises nor should they be taken as implying any indication, assurance or guarantee that the assumptions on which such future projections, expectations, estimates or prospects have been prepared are correct or exhaustive or, in the case of the assumptions, fully stated in this announcement. We assume no obligations to update the forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect actual results, changes in assumptions or changes in factors affecting these statements.For further information please contact:Veronika Kryachko Head of Investor Relations+7 495 663 6677 ext. 404Veronika.Kryachko@okmarket.ruwww.okeyinvestors.ru