Retailers Carrefour and Tesco have confirmed that they expect their previously-announced purchasing alliance to become operational in October.
The companies first announced the tie-up in July, with French company Carrefour joining up with UK peer Tesco to form a global purchasing alliance to demand better terms from major suppliers, in the latest attempt by the industry to drive down costs.
With combined annual sales of €147 billion, the partnership is designed to secure a better deal from the likes of Nestle , Procter & Gamble, Unilever, Danone and others to help the French and British groups to compete hard on price.
'Major Agreement'
Announcing the partnership in July, Carrefour chief executive Alexandre Bompard said, "This strategic alliance between Carrefour and Tesco is a major agreement as it combines the purchasing expertise of two world leaders, complementary in their geographies, with common strategies."
The move should also help to mitigate any potential post-Brexit risk for Tesco, with Philip Benton, research consultant at Euromonitor International noting that, “Tesco may also see this as a safeguarding of risk against possible supplier price rises in the event of a hard Brexit.”
News by Reuters, edited by ESM. Additional reporting by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
