Carrefour posted a net profit after minority interests from 2008 to 1.271 billion euros. 600 million euros will be invested to strengthen the brand and lower prices. Carrefour wants to create a new brand to compete with Lidl discount.
"France, France, France. That is the priority of Lars Olofsson. Arriving at the helm of Carrefour in January, the Director General has already delivered a first diagnosis on the occasion of the publication of the results of the company. The group has lost market share in France in 2008, to the detriment of Leclerc, and other hard-discount retailers. Lars Olofsson (formerly of Nestlé) intends to stop this trend by making France, where Carrefour makes 43.7% of its turnover, its priority. This figure was above 60% there are still four years.
Update on its strategy
Lars Olofsson has an inventory of the group's goals. The group aims to "generate profitable organic growth, sustainable and higher than the market, and improve margins." "Boosting the growth means strengthening our position in France and Europe and concentrate our development efforts in our growth markets with the greatest potential, "said Swedish. With the crisis, Carrefour has suffered particularly in the non-food, while other retail formats like supermarkets, more likely on the food and products of first necessity, fared better. For 2009, the group will focus on the business dynamics and the generation of free cash flow. To achieve this it will invest $ 600 million to strengthen the business dynamics. The group also intends to make cost savings operation of 500 million euros to support sales and the amount of investment will be capped at 2.5 billion euros. "This re-enchant the mark, and the hypermarket, and make its price image a weapon of conquest," he said.
Carrefour wants to create a new brand to compete with Lidl discount
this in mind that the group will create a new brand in the discount. The image of this new brand, whose code name is, according to La Tribune, "Carrefour Value" will be white, like the distributor Tesco Value. With this strategy, the group boost its sales in France and reform its image distributor more expensive than others. On the Champion brand, switching to the Carrefour Market will be five months ahead of the company said. The group also stressed at the meeting that his activities in France showed a good performance of supermarkets and convenience formats.
Results 2008, down
plan Lars Olofsson for Carrefour was highly anticipated, the group has particularly suffered in 2008, as evidenced The group's results released this morning. Net income group share stood at 1.271 billion euros last year, down 44.7%, against 2.299 billion a year earlier. Net income from continuing operations attributable to shareholders decreased by 32.8% in 2008 to 1.256 billion euros, mainly due to a tax provision to the tune of 126 million euros. Operating profit (EBIT) fell 16.8% to 2.77 billion, while the market expected a figure of 3.27 billion euros. Operating profit before non-recurring items in France fell by 3%, representing an operating margin 4%, virtually unchanged from that of 2007. The turnover excluding taxes, climbed 5.9% at current exchange rates to 87 billion euros. In the end, Carrefour will offer its shareholders a stable dividend to 1.08 euro per share.
Despite the decline in 2008 earnings, the stock rises 2.3% in stock on Thursday around 12:15. The remarks by Lars Olofsson reassured the market.
Journal of Finance
0 comments:
Post a Comment