Net profit for the financial year totalled €34 million. The EBIT from our ‘continuing operations’ came in at €44 million, while net sales were up 2.1% to €2,395 million.
CEO Koen Slippens: “Our annual theme for 2019 was ‘Back to Business’. Looking back, it was a year where the major strategic programmes required a lot of our attention, while the markets in which we operate also required considerable attention. Falling consumer confidence and stiff cost inflation in energy and logistics in particular created a challenging market landscape. Although our efforts have this year not yet brought the targeted financial results, they have created a solid basis for growth and better returns over the coming years, and we are confident that we have, therefore, made several important strategic steps forward.
In the Netherlands, 2019 was all about a number of major programmes. The integration of Sligro and Heineken and further reinforcement of our partnership, preparations for the transition to and building of our new online ordering platform and ERP package, the further detailing of our ‘Zelfbedieningsgroothandel van de toekomst’ (Cash-and-Carry of the Future) concept, the changes to the organisation to reduce the loss of synergies due to the sale of EMTÉ, and the acquisition and integration of De Kweker.
In Belgium, hard work has gone into consolidating our market position and strengthening the infrastructure and organisational foundations we need for a strong market position. Although the market in Belgium was equally challenging, the opening of our new store in Antwerp in late 2018 meant we were able to grow faster than the rest of the market. The associated investments and start-up losses put significant pressure on the result in Belgium.
In the coming year, we will prioritise five key focus areas from our long-term strategy, which we have captured in our annual theme for 2020: ‘Give me Five’. Besides completion of a number of major programmes, customer satisfaction and improving returns are also clear focus points. ‘Give me Five’ is specifically also about forging connections. Connections between departments and between the head office and regional operations, based on our firm belief that this is one of Sligro Food Group’s main strengths, and one that we have to reinforce after a period of great change. After the transitional year that was 2019, we are heading into 2020 full of energy and confidence."
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Download Annual figures 2019
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The 2019 Annual Report will be published on 31 January 2020. In our trading update of 23 April 2020, we will address the developments in the first quarter of 2020. The half-year figures will be published on 16 July 2020.
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