Last September, Groupe Auchan and Système U announced their purchasing partnership, when the U group entrusted a negotiation mandate covering major international and domestic brands to Eurauchan, which is the purchasing department of Groupe Auchan and its partners in France.
In the face of stagnating or even declining household food consumption, a deflationary context and a shared philosophy of the business they operate in – which has been further confirmed by the past 5 months of the purchasing partnership – the management of both groups decided to informer their staff representatives of plans to take this partnership further.
In accordance with the legislation applicable, the two groups are set to embark on discussions aimed at creating an alliance based on a joint strategy involving:
- closer cooperation in the purchasing field, bearing in mind that products sold by producers and SME in the fresh fruit and vegetables, cheese, meat, fish, bread, pâtisserie and cooked meats departments, as well as local products, are not expected to form part of this plan;
- efforts to seek closer synergies in the areas of development, network organisation and commercial and organisational functions.
Working together, the two companies want to:
- become a major player in the French GMS market, by creating a network offering the country’s best geographical coverage and the best concepts, both in terms of formats and distribution channels, drawing on the strengths of each store brand;
- perpetuate their original business models within the French economic landscape and developing their two product brands in France in a balanced but dynamic way: U and Auchan.
The two companies’ managements are convinced that they can build a sustainable new economic performance that will benefit their customers, their staff, their economic partners, their associated family businesses and, in more general terms, their local environment.
Together with Groupe Schiever, a historic business partner of Groupe Auchan, which shares the same values, this new entity should be in a position to take on a role of responsible leadership within the French market, once it has been given the go-ahead by the relevant competition authorities.
