AlphaMega


AlphaMega or AlfaMega is a Cypriot supermarket chain founded in 1997. In 2020, it was the second largest supermarket chain in Cyprus in terms of revenue, behind Lidl. As of January 2025, AlphaMega has a total of 21 supermarkets in Cyprus.

History

Alphamega Hypermarkets originated in 1996 with the opening of the Charalambides Hypermarket in Engomi, at the time regarded as a state-of-the-art retail development in Cyprus.
In 1997 the store was purchased by businessman Andreas Papaellinas, who founded C.A. Papaellinas Group Ltd. as the holding company for the venture. The banner “Alphamega” was adopted in 2002. That year the firm also inaugurated a second location in Acropolis. Continued geographic expansion followed:
  • 2004 – Acquisition and refurbishment of an existing hypermarket in Larnaca.
  • 2007 – Entry into Limassol with the launch of a large modern store.
  • 2009 – Two additional sites opened, in Kamares and Linopetra.
  • 2011 – Purchase of a neighbourhood hypermarket in Deftera, relaunched as “Alphamega fresh & easy”; later the same year a purpose-built hypermarket began trading in Paphos.
By the end of 2011 the chain had established a multi-city presence, positioning Alphamega as one of Cyprus’s principal hypermarket operators.
In May 2022, AlphaMega entered into a strategic partnership by marketing over 1,000 products from the Casino Group, making Casino products, packaged in French, a reference in Cyprus.
In April 2024, CEO George Theodotou announced the upcoming opening of an additional store on the island, in Astromeritis, which would bring the number of supermarkets on the island to twenty in the future.

Financing

AlphaMega is owned and operated by the Ch. A. Papaellinas Group, a major player in the distribution sector in Cyprus.

Communication

AlphaMega is the main sponsor of the Alphamega Stadium, an 11,000-seat football stadium located in Limassol. This stadium, inaugurated in December 2022, hosts the football teams of AEL Limassol, Aris Limassol, and Apollon Limassol. The contract signed by AlphaMega stipulates that the stadium will bear the name of the supermarket chain until its renewal at the end of the 2027–2028 season.