American retailer Costco has opened its first French store this week in Villebon-sur-Yvette, northern France, reports Le Monde.
The new warehouse store features around 3,800 wholesale products, 500 of which are devoted to luxury brands. Customers pay an annual fee to become a member, and consequently prices are between 20% to 40% lower than in standard supermarkets.
"It's a form of revolution, because Costco comes with methods that are no longer practiced in France - few products, almost no service and no theatre, but much lower prices," retail specialist Olivier Dauvers told LCI.
However, LCI also reports that only 10,000 membership cards have been sold so far, while Costco had expected that figure to be at around 30,000 by the time of the new store opening.
Retailer Profile
Costco plans to open ten to twelve new stores in France within the next ten years. The retailer is now present in eleven countries, with more than 725 warehouses and 225,000 employees worldwide.
The company achieved sales of €104.2 billion in 2016, and reports from its most recent quarter showed that sales are up by 8%.
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Solene Main. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
