Carrefour has announced the signing of a purchasing partnership with Fnac Darty, which will relate to the sourcing of household domestic appliances and consumer electronics in France.
The two groups said that the cooperation agreement will be “effective for the 2018 supplier negotiations”, and Carrefour and Fnac Darty will maintain independent commercial policies.
‘This agreement will be subject to prior information of the French Competition Authority and will be presented to employee representatives of each respective entity,’ Carrefour wrote in a statement.
Commenting on the move, analyst Bruno Monteyne of Bernstein Research said, “Fnac Darty is also looking to open up shops with another retailer. We think that would potentially be a much better option for Carrefour, allowing it to reduce its excess space. That might still be the case and might be part of the future strategy update, however, it would seem odd to first announce a buying deal, to then announce a materially different deal in a few months’ time.”
Confiance +
The move comes just a day after Fnac Darty – a firm formed out of music-and-book retailer Fnac and consumer-electronics operator Darty – announced a new strategic plan, called Confiance +, under which it is hoping to drive around €130 million worth of synergies.
“The rapid progress made in the integration of Fnac and Darty now allows the new group to present a strong, forward-looking vision through Confiance +,” Enrique Martinez, the company’s chief executive, said of the new strategy.
New Era
“Confiance + will usher Fnac Darty into a new era – the era of services platforms. In a world where digital is everywhere and where human contact is becoming a luxury, our plan will also rely on the exceptional quality of our teams, in order to offer to our customers Europe's best omnichannel experience and establish the group's momentum over the long term.”
Carrefour chief executive Alexandre Bompard knows Fnac Darty all too well. He left his position at the retailer last July to take up the job at Carrefour, and he will remain a director of the company until the final quarter of this year.
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
