Dutch Jumbo successful in last hurdle before Belgian expansion

Dutch supermarket chain Jumbo has achieved a 16.5 % turnover growth this semester, increasing its market share to 21.6 %. Expansion towards Belgium is next on the agenda.

Record market share

In the first six months of the year, the Jumbo Group recorded a consumer turnover of 4.63 billion euros, an increase of 16.5 % compared to the same period last year. 4.46 billion euros comes from the eponymous chain, 83 million from restaurant chain La Place (+ 5 %) and the Emté stores that have not yet been transformed generated a turnover of 85 million euros.

Jumbo’s organic growth is at 7 %, well above the market average. The rest of the turnover increase is due to the opening of new outlets. The 44 new supermarkets also contributed to reaching the highest market share ever.

“Our strategy of surprising customers with food experience is increasingly proving to be a fruitful one”, CEO Frits van Eerd commented. “Customers embrace this move. More and more, they want to be inspired while they are shopping: smell and taste, get new ideas, eat on the spot. That explains the success of the Jumbo Food Market, which has seven outlets throughout the Netherlands now. We are also adding elements of this concept to our regular stores more often.”

Investments

In the second half of the year, Jumbo will continue to invest in the store network, efficient home delivery through centralised hubs and its entry on the Belgian market. By the end of the year, some twenty stores will be completely renovated and seven new outlets will be opened. In addition, the chain intends to take over six Agrimarkt stores near the Belgian border.

The construction of a new distribution centre in Nieuwegein is going according to plan and the building should be operational in the second quarter of 2020. All of Jumbo’s other distribution centres will be undergoing a sustainability operation, where they will be fitted with more solar panels.