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ANNOUNCEMENTS•
Supermarket chain Jumbo had an eventful year, but there was little evidence of that in stores. For the first time, the company had a turnover of over 10 billion euros, partly helped by high inflation. Turnover is approximately 3.7% higher than the previous year.
The chain has been in the news several times negatively. In 2022, founder Karel van Eerd died at the age of 84, managing director Frits van Eerd became a suspect in a money laundering investigation and temporarily resigned, and an expensive advertising campaign during the World Cup it was canceled after criticism from construction workers.
Customers don’t seem to care about this at the moment. Jumbo claims to maintain a market share of around 22% in the Netherlands. Customers, however, more often opted for cheaper house brands instead of branded products.
“Big Loss”
In the message in which Jumbo announces the record turnover, the company talks about an exceptional and eventful year. Karel van Eerd’s death calls the company a great loss.
According to Jumbo, the investigation into Frits van Eerd has a big impact. In response to the suspicion, the supermarket chain had its motorsport sponsorship activities internally investigated. According to the company, no crimes or irregularities were reported.
Inflation pain
Speaking of high inflation, the company says it is trying to curb price hikes in negotiations with suppliers. It’s unclear from the figures how much pain Jumbo itself is in from inflation. Jumbo says it makes less on essential items.
Ton van Veen is temporary managing director following the resignation of Frits van Eerd. He says it’s hard to predict if and when prices will stabilize. According to him, it is inevitable that costs for the company will increase further this year.
