Carrefour sets out to crack the tough Nigerian supermarket sector

Carrefour’s Nigerian strategy will be under particular scrutiny, given the well-known challenges that international retailers face in that market. Shoprite, Pick n Pay, Game and Woolworths – all from South Africa – have failed in Nigeria, for example. 

Shoprite, which is very successful in Southern Africa, spent around 20 years trying to make it mark in Nigeria before deciding to exit the country. The Spar retail chain, however, has been more successful with local franchise partner Artee Group. 

Comments Ben Longman, CEO of emerging markets consultancy Trendtype: “It won’t be easy: Nigeria has proven to be a difficult market for international supermarket chains. Nigeria’s modern trade is very small for the size of the country and concentrated in a handful of major cities. 

“The main challenges have been a difficult operating environment (both complex and costly) and fx (foreign exchange) availability. Fx availability will be a concern because part of the agreement with HyperCity is that Carrefour’s imported private label products will feature in-store. 

“The recent trend, epitomised by the explosive growth of discounter Bokku, has been towards local chains that feature more domestically manufactured products.” 

Retailer is committed to growing its African footprint 

Carrefour aims to become Africa’s leading grocery retailer within four years, according to its recently published Carrefour 2030 strategy. 

The company is targeting operations in 22 African countries, part of 45 markets identified globally for expansion, as it seeks to boost growth and improve profitability. 

African countries where Carrefour is active include Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Uganda Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Cameroon, Senegal, Algeria, Morocco and Egypt. The group currently operates around 700 stores across the continent.