Swiss retail group Migros recorded a turnover of 24.815 billion Swiss francs (slightly over € 20 billion) last year, which is a decrease of 0.9% compared to 2010. Its retail turnover went down by 0.7% to € 17.4 billion, even though customer frequency was up 0.2%. The group blames the bad economic situation in Switzerland, pointing out that its “real growth was 2.1%” as average prices went down by 2.8%.
| department | turnover (in CHF) | 2010 |
|---|---|---|
| TOTAL | 24.815 billion | (-0.9%) |
| RETAIL | 21.045 billion | (-0.7%) |
| SWITZERLAND | 20.571 billion | (-2.0%) |
| FRANCE + GERMANY | 205 million | (+2.0%) |
| LESHOP | 149 million | (-1.3%) |
Switzerland is still, by far, the most important market for Migros, accounting for € 17 billion or 98% of worldwide retail turnover. The subsidiaries in the two main neighbouring countries, Migros France and Migros Deutschland, totalled a turnover of € 170 million.
Bio-success, online profit
The internet channel LeShop.ch saw its turnover decrease by 1.3% to € 123 million, but finished the year without making a loss - for the first time ever. Together with the online activities of its hotel and office services, the group's online activities were good for CHF 664 million (€ 550 million).
Migros highlighted the success of its 'eco-friendly' department (+7.0%), but complained about the 10% lowering in fruit and vegetable prices. The group was especially pleased with “the growing numbers of online orders through smartphone and tablet”, but refused to publish both profit figures and forecasts for 2012. However, given the sharp turn for the worse in the second semester, analysts fear for a difficult year for Migros - and the Swiss retail sector in general.
