French retail groups Système U and Auchan have announced that they are to shelve their supermarket-exchange plan, whereby some of each retailer’s stores would carry the other’s banner, citing technical complexity as the reason.
The companies will instead focus on achieving more clout in joint-purchasing agreements with SKU suppliers. L'Autorité de la Concurrence has been notified of the development.
In a joint statement, the retailers said that the logistics of the store-swap component of the deal are "too complex to roll out in the short-term,” according to Reuters. The plan was added after the companies had agreed in principle to work together for more power in negotiating with suppliers.
Private label products will not feature in the purchasing deal.
© 2016 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Peter Donnelly. To subscribe to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine, click here.
