Italian retailer Conad has announced plans to invest €1.5 billion in its operations between now and 2022, in order to strengthen its market position, implement continuous improvements to its existing network, and build its presence in areas in which it currently boasts a low market share.
Conad posted a turnover of €14.2 billion in 2019 (+5.9% on 2018), with turnover at the retailer growing steadily over the past decade – it posted sales of €9.8 billion in 2010.
The retailer ended last year as the market leader in Italian grocery, with a 13.8% share.
"We are proud of what has been achieved and we know that being a leader involves great responsibilities, especially in an extremely difficult moment for the economic and social life of the country," commented Francesco Pugliese, Conad chief executive.
"Our commitment will be even stronger and will not change: we will be close to people and families in difficulty and to large companies as well as to small Italian agri-food companies, continuing to take due account of the well-being of communities. We will also continue with investment towards the development of our network, as well as forming partnerships with new and emerging entrepreneurs."
Strong Start To The Year
The positive trend has continued into the first few months of the current year, with same store sales up 7.3% on the same period in 2019.
Hypermarkets have performed well (+20.2%), the retailer said, while Conad City is up 18.6%, Margherita Conad is up 21.7% and, among the specialised formats, PetStore (82.5%) grew by double-digits.
A significant contribution to the growth came from the completion of the acquisition of Auchan Retail Italia’s activities in Italy.
The operation, approved by the Antitrust Authority in March, will be completed by the end of September. Already 152 out of 265 former Auchan stores have been rebranded as Conad, while 18 stores are in the process of being restructured.
© 2020 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Branislav Pekic. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine
