REWE’s drugstore chain, BIPA, enters the Romanian market

“BIPA’s successful development in Austria and Croatia in recent years, as well as Penny’s in Romania, made the expansion into the Romanian market timely”

– the economic news portal quoted BIPA’s announcement.

“The development of the Romanian market is an important step in our international growth strategy” – stated Marcel Haraszti, member of the board of directors of REWE International AG. The opening of the first BIPA drugstore in Romania will take place in 2026.

BIPA operates around 570 stores in Austria, where it is the market leader, and 139 in Croatia. The drugstore chain is a member of the German REWE group, founded in 1927.

REWE is already present in Romania with the Penny discount chain, operating 416 stores and four logistics centers in the country. In 2024, it employed more than 7,500 people and its sales exceeded 1.9 billion euros (764.94 billion forints). Another member of the REWE group, the travel agency Dertour, is also active in the Romanian market. Previously, REWE’s supermarket chain, Billa, was also present in Romania, but was acquired by Carrefour in 2017.