Photo/NBD

Jan.5 (NBD) -- French retailer Carrefour denied a media report in December that it had mandated three investment banks to sell its businesses in China, Argentina and Poland as part of its turnaround plan.

As of the end of 2013, the retail behemoth has set up 236 brick-and-mortar stores in 73 Chinese cities, with a workforce of more than 60,000.

Reform underway

As retail alignment continues, Carrefour has seen a growing number of rivals working with local retailers in China to expand their presence. For example, retail giant Walmart continues to deepen its cooperation with JD. French retailer Auchan has formed a strategic alliance with Alibaba last November. 

Denying that it will exit the Chinese market, Carrefour told NBD that actually it has been actively promoting businesses in China. So far, it has made its e-commerce platform available in 18 Chinese cities. To attract more customers, the company will carry out more promotions online from January 5 to 31. 

Hu Chuncai, general manager of Shanghai-based consulting and training service provider UI SHARING, noted that supermalls like Carrefour should draw experience from Hema, a new retail-driven supermarket brand backed by Alibaba. To survive fierce competition, only brick-and-mortar stores plus App will be far from enough.

Hema can deliver fresh foods to customers' doorsteps within 30 minutes, featuring no minimum charge, free return, and unconditional refund. It gains about an extra 20-30 percent in customer flow through the online platform. In addition, the platform is independent from and less reliant on Taobao and Tmall, which offers hope for traditional retailers.

Carrefour said to NBD that the company is promoting innovations and reforms in China, including expanding the Easy Carrefour business, developing e-commerce business, and renovating existing stores, with more plans in the pipeline. 

Step into new areas

NBD noticed Carrefour has been moving forward with its multi-format, omni-channel growth strategy since 2015.

So far, it has launched 37 Easy Carrefour stores in Shanghai and Wuxi, part of its new initiative to cater to changing consumer habits and demand for neighborhood services in locations near residential or commercial areas. 

In addition to developing its own App, the retailer is cooperating with O2O platforms like group-buying site Meituan and food delivery service platform Ele.me. Besides, it is testing the waters in directly selling imported seafood, particularly oyster and lobster, online in Beijing and Shanghai.

To date, Carrefour has 6 modern logistic centers in use, which combines online and offline resources to offer a more effective shopping experience. Moreover, it has launched Carrefour Pay as an answer to the trend of "Internet plus payment."

Yu Simin, an analyst of the online retail department of China E-Commerce Research Center told NBD that Carrefour may have to start over without the help of online giants.

Carrefour is following the market trend to develop online businesses.

It is reported that Carrefour CEO Alexandre Bompard is going to release the company's turnover plan in China in January 2018. Carrefour China confirmed this Thursday, but declined to disclose any details.

Email: tanyuhan@nbd.com.cn