Groupe Casino

History

In 1892, Geoffroy Guichard became the sole proprietor of a grocery store located in the old Casino Lyrique cabaret in Saint-Étienne, which remained the Group’s flagship store for many years and is the origin of the group’s current title.

On June 25, 1898 Geoffroy Guichard opened the first branch store in Veauche and, on August 2 of the same year, he set up the Société des Magasins du Casino et Établissements Économiques d'Alimentation, operating under the name "Guichard-Perrachon & Cie". Following the company’s creation, the focus began to shift towards organisation with the construction of a warehouse in Saint-Étienne.

The first Casino-brand products were launched in 1901, introducing the concept of private brands. 1902 saw the introduction of a customer loyalty programme that offered trading stamps for store purchases. The first factories in the Loire region were opened four years later and by 1916 the company had introduced a family allowance fund and a proft-sharing system for their employees.

The first self-service store was opened in 1948 followed by the installation of France’s first refigerated display in 1949. Almost a decade later, Casino became the first French food retailer to display a sell-by date on their products, a practice that did not become mandatory in France until 1984. In 1975, Casino joined the global market through its expansion into the United States.

By 1992, the group had acquired La Ruche Méridionale before merging with Rallye, a French retailer owned by Jean-Charles Naouri, by giving 30% of Casino. 1997 saw the development of a hostile takeover bid from retailer Promodès. However, the bid fell through due to the combined efforts of Jean-Charles Naouri, the Guichard family, and the Group’s employees. The following year, Jean-Charles Naouri became the Group’s majority shareholder.

Between 2000 and 2001, Casino acquired 50% of the variety retailer Monoprix as well as the discount chains Franprix, Leader Price, and Cdiscount. Banque Casino was founded and the property company Mercialys is established to manage the Group’s shopping centers. In 2007, the Group inaugurated its new headquarters in Saint-Étienne, its historical stronghold.

In 2010, the group acquired Carrefour’s interests in Thailand. The same year the GreenYellow subsidiary connected its first solar power plant to the French power grid. In June 2012 the Group acquired a 50% stake in Monoprix from the Galeries Lafayette. Later that month they also acquired a controlling interest in the Brazil-based Pão de Açúcar. More recently, Groupe Casino gained management control of two of the Groupe’s foundational assets: GPA in Brazil and Monoprix in France.

Positioning and strategy

With the acquisition of a controlling interest in Grupo Pão de Açúcar in Brazil and the agreement with Galeries Lafayette to acquire 50% of Monoprix, 2012 saw Groupe Casino raise its profile in high-growth markets. Today, the Group has a network of more than 12,000 stores, of which 9,450 are in France. It operates in eight countries, generating net sales of €48,645 million and employing 329,000 people (2013).

The Group’s operations are based on a multi-format, multi-banner, multi-channel approach and a dual retailing/property business model.

International markets

The Group focuses on countries that offer high potential for growth and in which the Group’s subsidiaries have a strong local presence. Based on these criteria, Group currently concentrates on South America.

In 2013, emerging markets accounted for 60% of consolidated net sales (vs 56% in 2012), and 74% of consolidated trading profit (or €2,363 million). Groupe Casino is number one retailer in Brazil and Colombia.

Casino holds leadership positions in these markets:

France

Casino currently focuses on expanding its multi-format portfolio in the convenience and discount segments. Its business model is built on a network of strategically related, yet clearly differentiated banners – Spar and Vival (urban and rural superettes), Monoprix and Franprix (centre-city stores), Leader Price (discount outlets) and Naturalia (organic foods). With its 6,500 convenience stores, Casino leads this segment in France.

Private labels

The Casino Group’s portfolio comprises dozens of private labels covering a board range for apparel, gourmet, family, organic, fair trade, board-based, discount… The “Casino” brand is one of the best-selling private labels in France today in terms of penetration rates (own-brand sales relative to total store sales). Most of the Casino Group’s private label products for textile, home and food categories are manufactured through its sourcing division, Casino Global Sourcing which headquartered in Hong Kong.

E-commerce

Casino Group is a leading player in the French non-food e-tailer market with Cdiscount, and has built several grocery e-tailing solutions under its banners: Mescoursescasino.fr, Casinodrive.fr and Monoprix.fr. In Colombia, Casino is also one of the leaders in this growing segment via its banner websites (Exito.com,Carulla.com), and in Brazil, GPA’s subsidiary Nova Pontocom now ranks second in its market.

Property

A distinctive feature of the Groupe Casino business model is its dual retailing/property approach in France through two subsidiaries: Mercialys, a retail property company and Immobilière Group Casino, which owns the Group’s store properties.

Operations

In 2012, Casino had more than 12,000 outlets (126 hypermarkets, 446 supermarkets, 2,476 discount stores, 6,457 convenience stores and 299 restaurants) in France and abroad, usually through investments in local retailers. Examples include Libertad and Mini Libertad in Argentina, Disco and Devoto in Uruguay, Pão de Açúcar and Extra in Brazil, Exito in Colombia and other outlets in a dozen African countries and the Indian Ocean.

On 2 July 2012, Casino became the sole controlling shareholder of Grupo Pão de Açúcar, Brazil’s leading retailer and second largest online retailer. Grupo Pão de Açúcar has annual sales of €20.2 billion with a multi-format, multi-brand portfolio of more than 1,600 stores and 159,800 employees, making it the leading private-sector employer in Brazil. The controlling interest acquired in Pão de Açúcar significantly boosted the Group’s size, positioning it among the world's largest retailers.

In mainland France, Casino operates the following brands: Hyper Géant Casino (126 stores) Casino Supermarché (446), Monoprix (555), Franprix and Leader Price (600), Spar, Vival, Petit Casino and Casino Restauration. On Reunion Island, its brands are Géant Casino and Leader Price.

In 2005, Casino created Mercialys, a REIT-style listed property company that today manages some 150 shopping centres that are adjacent to Casino-owned hypermarkets and supermarkets, as well as the Group’s cafeteria properties.

In March 2012, Franprix announced plan to supply its 80 stores in central Paris with 450 tonnes of goods a day via the Marne and Seine Rivers, thereby shortening delivery times and reducing the environmental impact.

Brands

Groupe Casino’s brands a range of retail formats:

*Petit Casino *Casino Shop *Casino Shopping *Spar *Vival

In the world

Board of Directors

Executive Committee

Financial highlights

Net business volume includes all revenue from consolidated companies, associates and franchisees, on a 100% basis.

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ISIN: FR0000125585