Our optimism offers courage, strength and trust in the future We have had an extraordinary financial year, featuring some notable achievements and innovations. Once again, we gave our best as a group, especially in the final weeks of the financial year, when COVID-19 changed everything. In the challenging financial year 2019/20, our comparable group revenue grew by 1,7%. Our retail formats in Belgium, France and Luxembourg managed to increase their combined customer base and revenue. Excluding one-off effects, our comparable net result remained stable at 4,0% of revenue, which in absolute terms corresponds to a slight improvement compared to last year. As a result of the contribution of Parkwind into the new energy holding Virya Energy, we have realised a one-off gain of EUR 45 million this financial year, lifting the published profit to EUR 431 million. We added 19 new stores to our estate and some 20 stores were renovated. In addition, we invested further in e-commerce and the broader digital transition, to futureproof our retail activities. The online shopping service Collect&Go tested home delivery extensively; all
Colruyt stores received electronic price labels. Customers were introduced to automatic product recognition at the till. And personal smartphones now make it easier for Colruyt store employees in their work, as well as in their contact with one another and with customers. Sustainability remains the common thread running through everything we do, and we’re very proud of that. As last year, this annual report also contains the sustainability reporting, divided into 12 programmes, each with higher aims and associated KPIs. Incidentally, we have reduced the number of KPIs to the indicators that matter most.
We have also reached out more to the public with the ‘Step by Step’ story, to involve people more closely in a common effort for sustainability. In January 2020, we became the first Belgian retailer to stop offering plastic bags for fruit and vegetables. As hoped, customers are now well used to our reusable versions, of which we have given out more than 15 million for free. We are assigning more and more house brand products a Nutri-Score, to make it easier for consumers to compare products. And we are currently reviewing how we can calculate the environmental footprint of products in more detail. As far as agriculture
We fully support the necessary government measures to revive the economy. Inefficiencies in government administration mean that some of our tax money is currently lost in the system. In view of the great need, and the significant contributions of Colruyt Group and its employees to public finances, we believe that it is necessary, more than ever, for public funds to be allocated and used as effectively and efficiently as possible. For the well-being of the whole of society. Naturally, we will work hard together to generate a collective return on investment.
INTRO | Word from the Chairman • Who are we? • #AllTogetherAgainstCorona • Management report • Key figures
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