Metro AG has provided an update on its efficiency programme, announced in September, saying that it 'continues to advance its development into a 100% wholesale company'.
The group anticipates one-time expenses of between €60 million and €80 million in the 2019/20 financial year as it rolls out efficiency programmes across its operations, automates processes, and concentrates 'even more strongly on activities that represent true added value for customers'.
One-Off Costs
The one-off expenses will be offset by long-term savings in the mid-double-digit million range, the group added, with a figure in the 'low double-digit millions' expected to be realised in the coming year.
Metro said that the specifics of the potential measures will be clarified in the coming months, in consultation with employee representatives, management and staff.
'Growth Dynamic'
'Metro AG continues to advance its development into a 100% wholesale company,' the wholesaler said in a statement. 'A successful concentration on professional customers in the HoReCa (hotels, restaurants, catering businesses) and Traders segments, coupled with the pronounced localisation of the business models, will serve as the foundation for ongoing like-for-like growth and a stronger growth dynamic.'
On 25 September, Metro said that it would be reviewing efficiency programmes for administrative structures, processes and business activities, largely centred on its central administration.
© 2019 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.
