Spanish retailer DIA’s announcement of an expansion of its collaborative venture with France’s Casino, which will see the two companies develop a hub of expertise around the areas of supply chain and private label, is the latest in a series of collaborative moves by the Spanish operator.
In fact, since the sale of its France business to Carrefour three years ago, DIA has proven itself to be quite tactical when it comes to developing partnerships that help bolster its business’ proposition.
Groupe Casino Partnership
Recall that DIA and Groupe Casino commenced their collaboration partnership in November 2015, with the creation of a new firm, ICDC Services, a company aimed at coordinating both retailers’ purchasing negotiations.
At the time, both retailers said that the partnership was being developed to combine both retailers’ ‘expertise and the synergies that exist between their geographic locations and stores’, while also coordinating private label purchasing for both retailers.
The creation of the new company, CD Supply Innovation S.L., announced this week, is the natural evolution of that partnership, and extends the existing purchasing agreement into areas such as financial services and logistics.
Expanding With Amazon
But this is not the only notable collaborative venture the group has engaged in recently; in fact, barely a week ago, the latest development in the retailer’s ongoing partnership with Amazon was announced, with the installation of Amazon collection lockers in selected La Plaza de Dia stores.
In Amazon, DIA has found a partner that can provide it with an instant, best in class logistics platform in Prime Now, and in June, DIA announced that it was extending its partnership with the service to the city of Barcelona, following an initial rollout in Madrid.
Customers using the service can choose from a total of 5,300 products on DIA’s Amazon store, and have them delivered within a total of two hours, from a dedicated warehouse.
Private Label First
DIA’s work with Amazon also illustrates ways in which traditional retailers can benefit from engaging with the online powerhouse, rather than trying to take it on head first: focus on own-brand first and foremost.
Such is Amazon’s purchasing power, that any retailer offering branded grocery products for sale through Amazon is likely to face difficulties, given that Amazon itself is likely offering the same products at a reduced rate, or has the capability to undercut any ‘special offers’.
Such is the level of familiarity and respect among consumers for DIA’s private label ranges, that the retailer’s Amazon-based range is almost entirely comprised of own-brand products.
This means that shoppers that may still want to buy branded items, can do so via Amazon, and supplement these with private label products, supplied by DIA.
This dedicated focus on private label also has possibilities beyond the traditional, domestic online grocery channels; DIA recently announced that its own-brand products under the Clarel label are now available in German, Italian, French and British markets, again through Amazon Marketplace.
Clarel, a highly respected brand in Spain, boasts around 1,000 dedicated points of sale through the country; however it is largely unknown in Northern Europe. This partnership with Amazon, however, has the potential to change that.
In this fast moving world of retail, DIA is living proof of the importance of the old adage: ‘if you can’t beat them, join them…’
© 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
