Ahold Delhaize suffers from competition in US

Ahold Delhaize‘s turnover suffers from a tough American market, but the merger company saw more positive results in its home markets Belgium and the Netherlands. Online growth is a highlight in the company’s results.

Delhaize sees market share grow

Second quarter turnover went down 3.7 % to 15.5 billion euro, due to exchange rate fluctuations and the timing of Easter. At stable exchange rates, there would have been a 0.9 % growth. Moreover, profit went up from 355 million to 410 million euro. 

The group suffers from increased competition in the American market: while Hannaford and Food Lion stood their ground, the others lost theirs. Stop & Shop, Ahold Delhaize’s most important chain in the United States, will convert to a new store concept later this year. 

Better news came from Europe, with positive results to confirm the turn for the better that Belgian Delhaize made in the first quarter of the year. Thanks to a larger market share, turnover went up 1.9 % to 1.3 billion euro, while underlying profit increased by 6.8 % to 35 million euro – meaning the profit margin rose ever so slightly from 2.6 % to 2.7 %. CEO Xavier Piesvaux’ new strategy is clearly putting things on the right track. Dutch indicators were all positive: turnover went up 3 % to 3.5 billion and underlying profit went up 6.8 %.

Online growth

Presenting his first quarterly results, CEO Frans Muller announced he would steady the course and keep his strategy in line with his predecessor’s. Ahold Delhaize keeps its focus on health and convenience in all markets, featuring initiatives like online tool ‘My Nutritional Value’ that allows customers to check the nutritional information of the food products they buy. The group remains on course for its target of 5 billion euro online turnover by the end of 2020, as online sales went up 23 % last year.