Carrefour sees a slight decline in turnover in Belgium

In the first quarter of 2024 Carrefour achieved solid performance. The slight decline in turnover in Belgium is mainly due to the exceptional increase in turnover in March last year, due to the social unrest Delhaize.

No surprise

Carrefour Belgium’s comparable turnover showed a slight decrease of 0.2% in the first quarter compared to 2023, but is 9.7% higher than in 2022. The increased volumes in January and February confirm the excellent commercial dynamics, with an increase of comparable sales by 4.3%, the retailer reports.

The 7.6% drop in turnover in March is no surprise given the exceptional growth last year: when turnover rose by 16.8% because strikes broke out at Delhaize after the announcement of the Future Plan. Carrefour opened four new stores in the first quarter and saw double-digit online sales growth.

Private labels and e-commerce are growing

At group level, the turnover of the French retail group increased by 13.5% to well over 22 billion euros. This growth was driven by strong momentum in Latin America, where sales increased by as much as 48%. In Europe, on the other hand, the retailer saw a decline in sales, due to lower food inflation, price investments and weak volume growth. In the French home market, hypermarkets have to give up some ground.

The retailer refers in its press release to progress on important strategic initiatives. For example, the share of private labels in turnover increased from 35% to 37%. The ambition is to achieve 40% by 2026. In the field of e-commerce, the group is achieving a good turnover growth of 33%. The net promoter score (NPS), which measures customer satisfaction, increased by 6 points. And Eureca, Carrefour’s European purchasing center, now has 20 partner suppliers.