Carrefour to reduces prices in France
Anche sulla stampa italiana ho letto qualcosa circa il ridimensionamento che la taglia degli attuali ipermercati potrebbero avere in Francia per ritrovare snellezza ed efficienza e quindi ritrovare prezzi da proporre alla clientela piu' "decenti"...
.... nn parla solo di questo evidentemente...
PARIS -- New Carrefour SA Chief Executive Officer Lars Olofsson gave a blunt diagnosis of what ails Europe's biggest retailer and prescribed tough turnaround measures that include cutting prices and fixing its troubled supercenter business in France.
Mr. Olofsson said his priorities were "First, France; second, France; third, France" -- a reflection of the tough problems Carrefour faces on its home turf. In France, Carrefour's supercenters, which the company calls hypermarkets, and its discount stores are underperforming because their prices aren't always competitive and some products don't hit home with consumers.
"The hypermarket is no longer king in the country that invented it," said Mr. Olofsson, who joined Carrefour from food and drink maker Nestle SA.
Mr. Olofsson's assessment came as Carrefour, the world's second-largest retailer by sales after Wal-Mart Stores Inc., reported a 45% drop in net profit for 2008, which was mainly caused by a nonrecurring item related to problems the retailer has in Italy. Net profit dropped to €1.27 billion ($1.63 billion), down from €2.29 billion in 2007. Total nonrecurring charges were €524 million.
Carrefour's French business is performing more poorly than its other markets. French sales last year were practically flat because of slow sales of nonfood items, and operating profit there dropped 3%.
Carrefour fiercely competes with Wal-Mart, Tesco PLC of Britain and Metro Group AG of Germany in many of the 32 countries in which it operates. Any changes at Carrefour affect its rivals as well, as cash-strapped shoppers from Beijing to Buenos Aires hunt around for the best offers. Carrefour doesn't have stores in the U.S.
Mr. Olofsson said Carrefour needs to catch up with "the best in class" in global retailing. Some of his projects for improvement are already standard practice among some of Carrefour's competitors.
They include smaller stores that cater to consumers' growing interest in convenience, and improved customer knowledge that helps Carrefour tailor promotions to individual shoppers and fine-tune merchandise in individual stores or regions. Mr. Olofsson said Carrefour would also make additions to its private label range, including a new low-priced store brand the company plans to unveil in April.
The world's retailers are now putting prices at the center of their strategies. In Britain on Thursday, the country's fourth-largest retailer, Wm Morrison Supermarkets PLC, posted a 13% rise in profit before tax and one-off items for the year ended Feb. 1; the company had offered low prices and advertised them aggressively. Net profit dropped 17%, to £460 million ($638 million) from £554 million in the preceding year, because of a higher tax bill.
Also on Thursday, Belgian retailer Delhaize SA said 2008 net profit grew by 14% to €467.1 million, from €410.1 million in the prior year. The retailer, which generates about 70% of its sales in the U.S., has been pressuring its suppliers for low prices and more attractive ranges.
Mr. Olofsson said Carrefour would spend €600 million on price cuts and promotions this year, much of it to fuel its comeback in the price-driven French market. Next week, for instance, Carrefour is offering 10% discounts on 4,500 products in its 203 French hypermarkets and an instant lottery to get 80% off a full shopping basket.
In its home market, the retailer has faced stiff competition from discounters such as Germany's Lidl and France's E. Leclerc, which have run aggressive price cuts and promotions in recent months.
Mr. Olofsson also plans "tough decisions" on Carrefour's struggling nonfood business. Poor performance in the nonfood segment was the main reason for a sales drop in Carrefour's French hypermarkets last year. He said he might reduce the space given to nonfood products and cut some categories. Above all, he said Carrefour needed to make its nonfood range better
