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2013 ANNUAL ACTIVITY AND RESPONSIBLE COMMITMENT REPORT
3
INTERVIEW
What was the key to jumpstarting
this momentum?
We worked on three main priorities: refocus-
ing the Group on countries where we have
strong positions, going back to basics in our
business, and simplifying our organisation.
We laid the groundwork for a new Group by
monetising positions that weremore valuable
to others than to us and by reorganising our
partnerships. Today, we are focused on a
smaller number of countries in Europe, Latin
America, and Asia.
The second priority is going back to the
basics of retail: listening to our customers,
choosing the right offer, relying on men and
women who know and love their job, and
reinvesting in our stores. This has allowed us
to bring back our customers, build loyalty, and
offer attractive prices.
Finally, we are simplifying the Group’s organ-
isation to empower store directors, who are
tasked with bringing their own initiative and
adaptability to their respective markets. They
are the real drivers in optimising the banner’s
strategy.
Refocusing has left you with more
resources; have you started to invest
them?
First and foremost, refocusing our business
allowed us to solidify our financial structure
and be confident about the future. We have
also begun expanding and investing in our
stores again, which is essential for a com-
pany like ours. That is why we are gradually
investing in our assets, to make sure our
stores and their surroundings are friendly
and welcoming to our customers.
When you took over, in May 2012, you
announced a three-year recovery plan.
Are you confident today, halfway
through that plan?
Yes, the momentum is there, as our 2013
results demonstrated. Carrefour is back on
the road to profitable growth. We have
confirmed an upward trend in sales both in
France and abroad, and our recurring oper-
ating income is improving. At the same time,
we have begun to invest once again while
shoring up the financial structure of the
company. Theseareall very positive signs, and
after all their hardwork to get our Group back
onto solid footing, our employees deserve to
be proud of what they have achieved.
That’s exactly what
the 2013 results show…
Our efforts are starting to bear fruit.
Carrefour has whetted its appetite for
expansion. With Group sales increasing by
2.5% and recurring operating income
by 9.8%, we are growing once again. Our
business in France has recovered well, par-
ticularly in hypermarkets, posting its best
year of organic growth since 2007 across
all formats. In Europe, our performance has
also improved. In Spain, for example, sales
increased in the fourth quarter for the first
time in a long time. We saw excellent pro-
gress in Latin America and steady growth in
Asia. Carrefour is back on track.
OUR PRIORITY
IN A WORD:
CUSTOMERS.
Is that why you established a company
for shopping centres?
At the end of 2013, we announced a signi-
ficant undertaking to form a company that
would include 172 shopping centres adjoin-
ing our hypermarkets in France, Spain, and
Italy by purchasing 127 sites fromKlépierre,
in addition to 45 sites already owned by the
Group. The aim is to create an ecosystem
made up of the Carrefour store, the shop-
ping centre, the service station, the car park,
and the drive service. Building cohesion
between all these components will help us
further enhance the customer experience.
Carrefour owns a 42% equity stake in the
new company, which will enable the Group
to regain control over the operations of its
assets and launch a value-creating renova-
tion and extension plan.
What do you consider the very top
priority?
In a word: customers. Which means stores
as well, where teams are in the best position
to meet their customer needs. With so many
sites under banner, efficiency will come from
the ability of the local teams hiring, training
and promoting talent, and strengthening the
local anchorage.
CARREFOUR IS
GAINING GROUND IN
ALL ITS MARKETS
WITH A
MULTIFORMAT,
MULTI-LOCAL
MODEL.