Tesco and Carrefour to join forces

Brexit or no Brexit, British Tesco and French Carrefour have joined forces for the purchases of both A-brand products and private labels. Service suppliers too will face a united front from now on.

“Combining expertise of two world leaders”

Tesco and Carrefour have pledged their allegiance for three years. The move is remarkable, as it “combines the purchasing expertise of two world leaders, complementary in their geographies, with common strategies,” Carrefour’s CEO Alexandre Bompard said in a press statement. “By working together and making the most of our collective product expertise and sourcing capability, we will be able to serve our customers even better, further improving choice, quality and value,” Tesco CEO Dave Lewis agreed.

Both retailing giants will work together when it comes to international suppliers of private labels and A-brands, but also on services like marketing and data collection. Not part of the agreement are fresh produce and local and national levels. Poland and China too are excluded, as both companies are competitors of each other there. The best results of the cooperation are expected to be found in the rest of Eastern Europe and in countries like Malaysia and Thailand. 

At the same time, French groups Auchan, Casino and Schiever have concluded a deal with German Metro to start a purchase alliance in France and abroad. The rise of purchase alliances in France retailers stem from the fear that Amazon would really start to focus on delivering groceries in France.