Metro Cash

Chandigarh, Feb 18 (PTI) Metro Cash and Carry today saidit will open first wholesale centre in Punjab in the secondhalf of this year, with an estimated cost of Rs 60 crore.

"The first wholesale Center of Metro Cash and Carry Indiain Punjab is slated to open at Ludhiana during the latter halfof 2011," the company said in a statement today.

A team of Metro Cash and Carry India, led by its MDRajeev Bakshi, met Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badaland shared plans to enter the state.

Metro Cash and Carry had signed an MoU with the Punjabgovernment in 2008 for launching operations here.

The new centre will be the company�s seventh wholesalecentre in India. Metro has two wholesale centres each inBangalore and Hyderabad and one each in Mumbai and Kolkata.

Although the company did not say as to how many centresit plans to open in Punjab, it said Metro would spend Rs 60crore on opening of each wholesale centre in the state.

"We are convinced that our unique business-to-businesswholesale concept will be well-accepted by our businesscustomers here and will be beneficial to the local producersand the overall economy of the State," said Bakshi.

He added, "Metro will make an investment of over Rs 60crore per wholesale centre in the State of Punjab."

Metro entered the Indian market in 2003. It catersexclusively to professional business customers like hotels,restaurants, small retailers like kirana stores and offices.