Spanish supermarket chain Mercadona reported a turnover of €31 billion, up 11% year-on-year on a like-for-like basis, in its financial year 2022.
Out of the total, €30.3 billion was generated in its home market and the remaining €737 million in Portugal (up 77.6% year-on-year).
The retail group's net profit amounted to €718 million, up 5.6% on 2021.
Impact Of Inflation
The impact of inflation (15.7% in Spain and 19.9% in Portugal) reduced margins by 0.6% and put profitability at one of the lowest levels in the company’s history: €0.025 profit per euro sold, compared to €0.027 in 2021.
To minimise the impact of inflation on retail prices, the company implemented numerous measures to reduce costs and multiply efficiency, which helped in improving productivity by 7% compared to 2021.
At the same time, it implemented numerous actions to minimise the effect of price increases of raw materials, resulting in savings of €150 million in 2022.
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In Spain, Mercadona invested €783 million and ended the year with 1,637 stores, with a 15.5% market share.
During the past year, the company shuttered 49 stores that did not fit its new, more efficient and sustainable store model, but also opened 53 new stores.
It also opened two new warehouses for the preparation and distribution of orders for online sales in Spain, while the ready-to-eat section was rolled out in 972 stores (933 in Spain and 39 in Portugal).
Portugal
In Portugal, the Spanish retailer invested €140 million, opening ten new stores during the year and taking the network to 39 supermarkets.
Mercadona’s operations in Portugal remained in the red, with a net loss of €50 million in 2022, an improvement over a loss of €64 million the previous year. The units expects to break-even in 2024.
Turnover from online sales amounted to €540 million.
For 2023, Mercadona has earmarked €1.1 billion for investments, of which €280 million will be used in Portugal to open new stores, mainly in central Portugal.
Plans also foresee the construction of a new logistics base in Almeirim, its second in Portugal and the largest in the entire chain. The project is worth €200 million and due for opening in 2024.
© 2023 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest Retail news. Article by Branislav Pekic. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
