Measuring Romanian do-it-yourself retail chain’s efficiency during the economic crisis

The purpose of this study is to measure Romanian do-it-yourself retailers’ efficiency during the period of 2007-2010. The sample encompassed all do-it-yourself retail chains in Romania present in the market during the given period, that is 10 chains in all. For the purpose of the analysis, the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) method was used. The DEA model includes three variables, namely, two inputs (fixed assets and the average number of employees) and one output (turnover). The results of the DEA analysis show a high level of efficiency in the Romanian do-it-yourself market during the period of the economic crisis. The mean score of technical efficiency varied between 0.829 and 0.904. According to the results, the domestic do-it-yourself retailer Dedeman outperformed the international competition during the analyzed period. Dedeman was also one of the best performers in the market in 2010. The well-performing companies' market penetration and development strategies are discussed briefly. The study seems to have been the first to apply performance measurement by means of the DEA in the Romanian do-it-yourself market.