With the acquisition of the Saturn consumer electronics stores in the early 1990s, the corporate group laid the foundation for a consistent dual retail brand strategy. It made the deliberate decision to retain both brands. Media Markt and Saturn have their own separate management structures and compete with each other. It is the customer first and foremost who benefits from this “homegrown” competition. They are the ones who can be sure of always having the best possible offers available to them.
Every store is an independent company in which the manager of the store holds a share of up to ten percent. The managers of the individual stores decide on their local advertising needs, the selection of products they offer, pricing and personnel planning. This allows them to respond flexibly to the needs of their own particular customers.
This strategy is paying off handsomely: Media Markt and Saturn continue to enjoy steady growth and have become the leading consumer electronics retailers in Europe. There are currently over 800 Media Markt and Saturn stores in 16 countries, which generated net sales of 19.7 billion euros in 2009. The corporate group has a current headcount of over 60,000 - over 2,000 of whom are employed at the group’s headquarters in Ingolstadt, Germany.
