Carrefour, Europe’s largest grocery retailer, prospered last year as its turnaround strategy and food inflation boosted figures.
Over the 12 months to 31 December, the French retailer’s total sales climbed 16.1% to €90.8bn, with like-for-like growth of 8.5%. The company noted that it had made market share gains in all its key countries, with its e-commerce activities performing particularly well, up 26.0%.
Annual recurring operating profit was up 8.3% to €2.38bn, supported by cost-saving measures.
In the fourth quarter of 2022, Carrefour’s like-for-like sales growth accelerated to 10.9%, primarily driven by food (+12.0%), while non-food grew by +5.1%.
In its home market, like-for-like sales rose 5.6%, with hypermarkets up 3.7%, supermarkets increasing 5.9%, and convenience stores growing 10.7%
Carrefour’s performance was even stronger outside of France, with sales in the rest of Europe up 6.2% in the quarter, while sales at its unit in Latin America jumped 28.2%.
“Carrefour once again demonstrated the strength of its model by delivering a remarkable performance in 2022 in an unprecedented inflationary environment,” said Alexandre Bompard, Chairman and CEO.
“The pillars of the Carrefour 2022 plan allowed us to offer solutions to customers to address pressure on purchasing power, while staying the course on the food transition for all and maintaining strict financial discipline.”
He added: “With the Carrefour 2026 plan, we are embarking on a new phase of conquest, with greater ambition in digital, the development of our discount offer and new social and environmental commitments. In 2023, Carrefour will continue to differentiate itself for the benefit of its customers and shareholders.”
Carrefour stated that it was expecting further growth across its main three indicators – EBITDA, recurring operating income and net free cash flow – this year.
