Sales in the Centra chain breached the €1 billion level for the first time last year as convenience brands tightened their grip on the booming grocery market, writes Arthur Beesley, Senior Business Correspondent

The chain's owner Musgrave-SuperValu-Centra said sales of €1.035 billion at its 382 outlets were 11.29 per cent ahead of the €930 million in sales in 2004. Like-for-like sales were up 8.5 per cent when the contribution from the 43 new stores that opened last year was excluded from the data.

The departure of some franchisees to rival networks meant there was a net increase of only 29 in the number of Centra stores last year. It had 353 stores in 2004. The departees included the Griffin group, which had six Centra stores in central Dublin.

Most Centra stores are owned by independent grocers or grocery groups under franchise from the privately-owned Musgrave group. Musgrave is a significant beneficiary of the brand's growth as it is the exclusive wholesaler to the franchisees.

The group is also wholesaler to the SuperValu chain of large-format supermarkets, whose turnover last year has not yet been made public.

Centra's expansion means that the two biggest convenience brands in the Irish market now boast annual sales of more than €1 billion. Its nearest rival Spar said last month that its stores had sales of more than €1.1 billion in 2005. Spar has 415 outlets, 33 more than Centra.

Neither Musgrave nor the Spar owner, BWG Group, reveal the specific profit margins of their respective chains. However, such stores are highly profitable because they trade more on convenience factors such as longer opening hours than price.

Musgrave said yesterday that its franchisees invested €70 million in new stores and refurbishment last year. The creation of 525 jobs last year brought employment in the chain to 11,000.