Dutch wholesaler Sligro Food Group has posted a 2.7% year-on-year increase in revenue in the first quarter of its financial year, to €652 million.
In the Netherlands, Sligro reported 3.8% growth in revenue to €554 million, seeing good performance in new customer growth rates and expansion of packages for existing customers.
The group noted that it is still witnessing its professional customers buying lower volumes, reflecting a cautious approach while spending.
In Belgium, the company saw a 3.2% year-on-year decline in the first quarter to €98 million, impacted by problems at its delivery site in Antwerp last year.
However, the company's new customer acquisition is progressing well and it has started to see some of the customers returning to the company.
Sligro-M’s cash-and-carry outlets saw revenue growing to €37 million, from €31 million in the same period last year.
The impact of acquisition on Sligro's revenue levelled off in the first quarter and is now around the 3% mark, the company added.
Tobacco Sales
The company is witnessing tobacco sales shift as more and more retailers opt to stop selling tobacco, well ahead of a ban on tobacco sales in supermarkets coming into effect officially.
On the back of this development, tobacco’s share in Sligro's revenue grew to 9.2% in the first quarter.
Sligro will stop selling tobacco from 1 July 2024, except for sales under several contracts that run to the end of 2024.
The company will stop selling tobacco altogether from 2025.
Sligro Food Group reported a 15.2% year-on-year increase in revenue to €2.9 billion in its 2023 financial year, with an 8.6% increase in revenue in the Netherlands.
