Retail and consumer goods industry news

As part of its 2012 results announcement, in which it revealed a 7% increase in gross revenue, Mercadona said it is temporarily postponing international expansion in favour of focusing on the development of a sustainable agri-food chain.  Focus on developing a sustainable agri-food chain Mercadona reported a 7% increase in gross revenue for 2012, to €19,077m, and net profit of €508m, al...

Sales at the John Lewis Partnership increased by 9.3% to £9.5bn in the year to January 26 2013, driven by a strong sales uplifts at both Waitrose and John Lewis.  Impressive performance from Waitrose Waitrose gross sales were ahead by 6.7% at £5.7bn. LFLs (excl. petrol) increased by 3.4%, with an acceleration in the second half, as the impact of significant investment in lowering prices was...

Carrefour revealed solid full year sales of €76.8bn, a 0.9% increase year-on-year, but there's hard work ahead to drive growth in 2013. Reducing its debt by divesting of operations in non-core markets and seeing more than three-fold increase in net profit to €1.23bn marks the start of a new strategic phase for the retailer. Improvements in the domestic market In France Carrefour delive...

Target, one of the largest US retailers, has marked its international debut by opening its first three stores in Canada. This is likely to have a  significant impact on the highly competitive Canadian retail sector, but the biggest effect is likely to be noticed by general merchandise retailers, given Target's reputation for excellence in this area. Two years in the making The opening of Ta...

BIMcell, the mobile communications brand of BIM, has reached 250,000 subscribers within nine months of launch in March 2012. The service offers prepaid calling services in Turkey and 97% network coverage across the country. BIMcell enjoys growth but is a small operator in the wider market Other competitors include Turkcell, Vodafone (previously Telsim) and Avea. BIMcell is the most recent m...

Kroger’s fourth quarter sales increased by 12.8% to $24.2bn, or by 3.7% on an adjusted basis accounting for an extra trading week in 2012. Identical store sales (ex-fuel) increased by 3.0%. For the full year, total sales increased by 7.1% to $696.8bn, or 4.9% on an adjusted sales basis. Identical store sales increased by 3.5%. Solid performance but consumer confidence remains fragile Kr...

Tesco has announced changes to make the sourcing of its food simpler, shorter and more transparent. Local sourcing Tesco has decided to extend its policy on local sourcing. Currently all of the retailer’s beef – fresh, frozen and in ready meals – comes from the UK and Republic of Ireland. As of July 2013, Tesco will source all of its fresh chickens from the UK and, over time, ensure t...

As Waitrose reports on a strong 2012/13, we look at three key levers that will drive its sales momentum in the coming year. 1. Becoming a truly omnichannel retailer With an impressive 49% uplift, Waitrose.com outperformed over the year, with the online basket size on average five times higher than in-store. This growth was also driven by the growing number of collection points in-store,...

Delhaize has confirmed 2012 sales of €22.7bn, up 2.9% and reported lower profits, impacted by ongoing price investments. Solid results amidst tough trading conditions Overall, the results gave reason for optimism, not least in improving Q4 sales in Belgium and good growth in Southeastern Europe. The slowdown in profitability, with operating profit down 17% at €810m and operating margin fal...

Following solid full year results, CEO Georges Plassat has outlined Carrefour's plans as strategy transitions from review and refocus into action. Investment: how Carrefour plans to reinvigorate larger stores Carrefour's strategy of review and refocus has seen the divestment of operations in five markets over the year. Combined with a drive towards greater operational efficiency, ...