Following today’s release of Carrefour’s figures for the 26 weeks ending 30 June 2023; Eleanor Simpson-Gould, Senior Retail Analyst at GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company, offers her view: “Carrefour’s Q2 results for 2023 build upon a strong Q1 start to the year, with total revenues for the period reaching €45.4bn, supported by a +10.3% like-for-like (l-f-l) uplift in Q2 and +20% growth in ecommerce. With the Carrefour 2026 plan underway and acquisition of Cora and Match banners in France confirmed, Carrefour’s agile investment plan has so far weathered turbulent inflation levels across its European and Latin America divisions. Weaker Q2 l-f-l growth from Carrefour’s Poland and Brazil operations was offset by a return to growth in Belgium and Spain which achieved sales gains of 12.5% and 7.7% respectively versus Q2 2022. Carrefour’s diversification in own brand products, discontinuation of Taiwan operations, investment in ecommerce and transformation of operational efficiencies are significant strategy improvements amid difficult trading conditions globally.
“In its home market of France, Carrefour’s investment to solidify sales has paid off, as food sales growth reached +8.5% l-f-l in Q2, though non-food remains challenged as sales fell 3.1% l-f-l, facing decreasing volumes as a result of inflationary pressures on consumers. Carrefour’s private labels remain key to capture consumers switching retailers and trading down to alleviate the strain on disposable income. For the year ahead as food inflation eases in Europe, Carrefour is right to focus on inventory management to improve sales in its non-food proposition. Carrefour’s investment in its home-grown operations has been far reaching. The roll out of AI functions to ecommerce platforms, undertaking lease management for large format stores and the conversion of 76 sites in partnership with Nexity in addition, to acquisition of Cora and Match banners, will bolster Carrefour’s leadership in the French market and provide improved agility in managing operational costs. and driving continued sales growth in France. Outside of France, Carrefour’s European l-f-l growth improved +8.1% for H1. Most notably, Carrefour’s Belgium operations returned to growth in H1 2023, up +11.3% following successive years of sales decline in H1 2021 -2.2% and H1 2022 -5.9%, lifted by improved volumes.
“Growth from Carrefour’s Latin America arm, comprising Brazil and Argentina, was mixed. Overall sales inc. VAT totalled €12.2bn in H1, softened by a decline in Q2 sales in Brazil, Carrefour’s second largest revenue contribution after France at €10.2bn. As inflation in Brazil fell since the Q1 results were announced in April, growth lagged behind Carrefour’s European arm at 0.8% for H1. Store conversion costs and rapid expansion in Carrefour’s Atacadão cash & carry business over the last 12 months in Brazil dampened profits as B2B consumers awaited price reductions. Growth declined 3.2% in Q2 from +5.7% in Q1, however e-commerce GMV posted strong growth of +30% for Q2. In contrast, Argentina’s sky rocketing inflation levels strengthened sales growth in H1 as sales reached €1bn, up from €898m in H1 2022. Despite inflation levels still climbing, Carrefour’s Argentina operations provide a valuable asset to grow
