Dutch supermarket giant Ahold Delhaize delivered slightly dipping US sales in Q4, though its recent sale of grocery delivery company FreshDirect promises sunnier US margins.
The company, owner of US chains Giant, Stop & Shop, Hannaford, and Food Lion, along with a number of international grocers, reported its net sales were up 1.9% for Q4 but down 1.4% YoY.
“In an increasingly complex world, our brands are able to deliver consistency to customers, associates and suppliers, quarter after quarter,” President and CEO Frans Muller said.
Net sales for the company’s US group were up 1.8% in 2023, but dropped 1.5% in the quarter, which it attributed to cooling inflation and a decrease in SNAP spending. Food Lion and Hannaford were bright spots for the company during the quarter; the former notched 45 straight quarters of positive comparable sales growth.
Its online sales in the US were down 1.9% in the quarter due to a tough performance from FreshDirect, which Ahold Delhaize USA sold to Getir in December to turn its focus to omnichannel grocery. The sale has given its US margins “a modest uplift,” Muller said, which it’ll use to invest in its US stores.
Cold cuts: Instacart, too, is navigating the realities of operating in the low-margin grocery delivery business, this week announcing its decision to cut 250 jobs—7% of its staff—as well as the exit of three of its executives, including COO Asha Sharma.
The move will “allow us to reshape the company so we can focus on our most promising initiatives and execute more efficiently through a flatter organization,” CEO Fidji Simo said. The news comes as the company has increasingly focused on advertising and grocery store tech, aiming for profitable growth, especially since going public in September.
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