METRO Cash & Carry in its Tenth year in India Showcases global experience and local impactin the Capital

New Delhi, October 26, 2012: METRO Cash and Carry India, the global leader in self-service business-to-business wholesale, is presenting a high-tech interactive pavilion showcasing its global knowledge and experience at the Indo-German Urban Mela (IGUM) in New Delhi. After travelling to three cities, the Indo-German Urban Mela begins at the Indraprastha "Millenium" Park from Saturday, October 27, 2012

Shri Tejender Khanna, Lt. Governor Delhi, Mr. Michael Steiner, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany and Ms. Sushmita Sen, Bollywood star inaugurated the festival and visited the METRO pavilion. METRO is a city partner for IGUM.

At the nine day long festival, METRO pavilion will showcase the company’s contributions to the sustainable development of the country by exhibiting its advanced systems and processes in quality and supply chain management. Through state-of-the-art projection techniques, personalized standees will explain the contributions METRO has made to the lives and businesses of farmers, traders and hospitality professionals. Digital information kiosks will provide information about METRO as a partner in the sustainable urban-rural transition highlighting the festival theme “StadtRäume – CitySpaces”. In addition, bar code scanners will tell the stories of METRO products and invite visitors to experience the stories and supply chain behind the products, which are used on a daily basis by millions of people

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Rajeev Bakshi, Managing Director, METRO Cash & Carry India said “We are proud to be associated with the Indo-German Urban Mela, and look upon our ten years in India with a sense of great pride and achievement. The Mela has provided us with a great opportunity to showcase our many milestones and achievements as the pioneer of Indian Cash & Carry wholesale. We are really happy to welcome all visitors to our pavilion to discover how METRO Cash & Carry India supports farmers, traders and entrepreneurs, and bridges the rural-urban divide in India.”

With the population of existing mega-cities such as Mumbai and New Delhi tripling in size by 2050, the demand for fresh and local food will also rise dramatically. To address problems of food wastage, efficient transportation and distribution, METRO has developed many unique solutions across the supply chain including Fruit & Vegetables Collection Centres across the country, extended farmer training programs for sustainable crop production techniques and improved quality, as well as collaborations with local kiranas and small traders to help them provide effective services to the end-consumer.

According to Mr. Vishal Sehgal, Corporate Relations Head, METRO Cash & Carry India,“With rapid urbanization there has been a radical change in consumer lifestyle and food habits. Companies like METRO not only ascertain a safe and sustainable supply of food for the growing population but also provide a one-stop solution for a varied range of products leading to better mobility, space utilization and supply chain thus contributing to overall urban development and sustenance.”

The METRO Cash & Carry India pavilion at the Indo-German Urban Mela at Indraprastha Park welcomes visitors from October 27 until November 04

About METRO Cash & Carry

METRO Cash & Carry is represented in 30 countries with over 700 self-service wholesale stores. With more than 100,000 employees worldwide, the wholesale company achieved sales of about € 31 billion in 2011. Headquartered in Dusseldorf, Germany, METRO Cash & Carry is a sales division of METRO GROUP, one of the largest and most international retailing companies, and reached sales of around € 67 billion in 2011.

METRO Cash & Carry commenced operations in India in 2003, and currently operates twelve operational wholesale centres – two each in Bangalore, Hyderabad and Mumbai and one each in Kolkata, Ludhiana, Jalandhar, New Delhi, Jaipur and the most recent store in Zirakpur

For media queries, contact: press@metro.co.in