Moscow, 13 October 2021 – X5 Group ("X5" or the "Company"), a leading Russian food retailer (LSE and MOEX ticker: "FIVE"), has opened a new Vprok.ru Perekrestok dark store with a total area of 37,000 sq m. Located in Salaryevo, Novomoskovsky District, it is the online hypermarket’s third such facility in Moscow and the fifth and largest in Russia. The new dark store has increased Vprok.ru Perekrestok’s total capacity in the Moscow region by 40%.
Initially, it will carry 30,000 SKUs, with the assortment projected to grow to 120,000 SKUs by the end of 2021. In the newly opened dark store, the area for non-food or extended shelf life products is four times larger compared to the online hypermarket’s other facilities.
The new dark store currently handles around 500 orders per day and has about 220 employees and 30 vehicles to support its operations. Once at full capacity, it will be able to handle 8,000 orders, with the number of staff and vehicles growing to 600 and 200, respectively. Going forward, the facility may generate as many as 4,000 jobs in the region.
"Dark stores are at the core of Vprok.ru Perekrestok’s business model – this is where we assemble all our orders. The online hypermarket’s mission is built around stock-up shopping and delivery of orders of up to 500 kg on the same or next day. To meet our customer’s expectations, we need to ensure speedy processing and order assembly, which the dark store model helps achieve," said Leonid Dovladbegyan, Managing Director of Vprok.ru Perekrestok. "Speed is particularly important today, when customers are increasingly opting for online shopping. This shift in preferences makes it a key competitive advantage. By opening the third dark store in Moscow, we seek to boost our capacities in the region and improve order handling efficiency to ensure faster and more convenient delivery for our customers."
Currently, the Vprok.ru Perekrestok online hypermarket handles up to 15,000 orders per day, with the total number in Q2 2021 having exceeded 1 million (up 13% year-on-year). The average ticket was RUB 4,877. Today, there are five Vprok.ru Perekrestok dark stores in Russia, including three in Moscow (in Vyoshki and Vidnoye) and one each in St Petersburg and Nizhny Novgorod.
The online hypermarket’s courier service is offered in eight regions across Russia, including Moscow and St Petersburg, as well as the Moscow, Leningrad, Nizhny Novgorod, Ryazan, Tula and Tver regions. Orders are delivered to a customer’s doorstep by truck drivers, with over 70,000 SKUs available for purchase, including from the fresh and ultra-fresh categories. All trucks are equipped with special refrigerators to maintain proper temperature during delivery.
In 57 additional regions, Vprok.ru Perekrestok operates in the self-pick-up format, offering customers an assortment of 40,000 SKUs that comprises household goods, household chemicals, children’s products, groceries, professional pet goods and more. However, fresh, ultra-fresh, frozen and large-sized goods are not available for pick-up in these regions. Shoppers can collect their orders at the checkout of the nearest Pyaterochka store or at 5Post pick-up points, with 3,500 of them integrated with the service.