In the first half of the year, all of Carrefour‘s store formats in Belgium gained market share. The food retailer also performed strongly at group level.
Commercial policy
Carrefour Belgium’s strategic plan 2026 is starting to bear fruit, the retailer says: comparable sales rose 11.3 % and volumes increased, especially in its hypermarkets. Both those hypermarkets and Market supermarkets and Express convenience stores gained market share in the past six months, possibly benefiting from strike actions at competitors Delhaize and Mestdagh.
The food retailer attributes the good results to a combination of factors, including a separate commercial policy with specific leaflets and promotions per store format, the purchasing power actions, the focus on private brands, and the application of the so-called “method Maxi” that improves productivity in the stores.
Saving costs
In addition, Carrefour saw growth in Belgium for online sales and fast delivery services. Just recently, the retailer renamed its personal delivery service Shipto to Carrefour Fast Delivery to create more clarity for customers, and in Knokke this summer the company is testing autonomous delivery robots. The retailer is also working on the cost side, with rationalisation and automation initiatives, reduced energy consumption, logistics operations, joint purchasing and synergies with the Carrefour group.
At group level, Carrefour also published strong results. Comparable sales rose 11.2 % to 45.4 billion euros, but operating profit did fall 2.2 % due to costs associated with the integration of Grupo Big in Brazil. The French home market saw comparable sales growth of 7.2 %, with the retailer gaining market share. Other European countries also did well, with the exception of Poland, which had an exceptionally strong second quarter a year ago due to the war in Ukraine, and is now returning to “normal” figures.
