The Ladybug's fresh plan leaked. This could be the end of Carrefour in Poland!

A powerful change in strategy in Jeronimo Martins, owner of the Ladybug Network. In order to accomplish an ambitious financial objective, the Portuguese giant considers "a more aggressive merger and acquisition strategy" on the Polish market. According to Bloomberg, Carrefour can be targeted, which has been struggling for months. For Polish customers this may mean a real revolution in the retail marketplace and the disappearance of hundreds of well-known shops.

The president of the Jeronimo Martins Group, Pedro Soares dos Santos, officially announced that the company is looking for fresh improvement routes to increase yearly sales by half over the next 4 years. Given that Ladybug generates around 70-80% of the full group's income, the biggest changes must take place in Poland. The existing model based on organic growth and the beginning of fresh facilities may no longer be adequate for specified a saturated market, in which Ladybug already has nearly 30% of shares. That's why the table came up with an option that the company has avoided over the years – taking over the competition.

The ambitious goal of Jeronimo Martins. Ladybug must gain much more

The strategical nonsubjective set by the Jeronimo Martins Board is highly ambitious. Group wants to accomplish yearly sales at EUR 50 billion by 2029. It's a immense leap compared to the current results. To realize the scale of the challenge, just look at the latest financial data. In the first half of this year, the full group's revenues amounted to EUR 17.4 billion, which means that the mark for 2029 requires almost doubling the current turnover over just a fewer years.

Poland plays a key function in this plan. Ladybug, with a net counting at the end of June 3802 shops, is the absolute financial pillar of Jeronimo Martins. In the first half of 2024 alone, it generated EUR 12.4 billion in revenue. However, even specified dynamic growth may prove insufficient. The marketplace in Poland is already very competitive and saturated, and Ladybug is the leader on it with a immense advantage over the second in the order of Lidle (about 900 establishments). The further beginning of hundreds of fresh shops is becoming logistically and economically more difficult. That is why, as president Pedro Soares dos Santos acknowledged, the company must consider new, more extremist steps.

A fresh “aggressive strategy” in Poland. president announces acquisitions

The words of Jeronimo Martins, quoted by Bloomberg, leave no illusions. The company is in the process of developing a plan, and 1 of the main options under consideration is "A more aggressive strategy for mergers and acquisitions". This is simply a fundamental change in the approach of the Portuguese company, which in Poland for decades focused almost exclusively on the improvement of its own network. The acquisitions of competitors were almost absent in their strategy.

Bloomberg's analysts emphasize that specified a move, though not in the Ladybug style, becomes a necessity in the face of specified ambitious financial goals. This is confirmed by the financial manager of the company, Anna Luisa Virginia, who stated that the company actively monitors the marketplace situation and is open to talks concerning possible acquisitions. It is simply a clear signal to the marketplace that the biggest player in the Polish trade is ready for large purchases, which can completely shuffle the arrangement of forces in the industry.

The implementation of an aggressive takeover policy would let Ladybug to increase the number of locations, destruct part of competition and rapidly increase marketplace shares. This is simply a high-risk strategy, but it gives the chance to implement the 50 billion euro sales plan per year.

Who's targeting Ladybug? Analysts indicate Carrefour

Although Jeronimo Martins' representatives did not indicate a circumstantial network, marketplace analysts and Bloomberg journalists have their favorite. First clues lead consecutive to Carrefour Poland. The French network has been facing problems on the Polish marketplace for a long time, making it a possibly easier mark to take over.

As early as February this year, Carrefour Poland announced a restructuring plan that assumed the closure of unprofitable stores, group redundancies and a simplification of commercial space in hypermarkets. These perturbations can get the French office to sale the Polish branch. From Ladybug's perspective, it's a perfect opportunity. Carrefour owns in Poland over 800 facilities in different formats – from large hypermarkets to tiny residential shops. Taking over specified a grid would give Jeronimo Martins immediate access to hundreds of new, frequently attractive locations, without having to build them from scratch.

For now, it is unclear whether Ladybug would be curious in taking over the full Carrefour network or just the selected, most forward-looking stores. However, the very anticipation of specified a transaction creates a immense stir in the industry.

What does the Ladybug and Carrefour merger mean for customers?

Carrefour's possible acquisition by Ladybug would have far-reaching consequences not only for the market, but especially for millions of Polish consumers. specified a merger could mean:

• Smaller choice: The disappearance of a large, nationwide chain of shops would inevitably reduce competition. In many places where both networks operate today, customers would have a much smaller choice.
• Change of assortment: Customers accustomed to Carrefour's offer, including own brand products or circumstantial articles not available in the Ladybug, would gotta look for alternatives. Stores after acquisition would most likely be rebuilt and adapted to Ladybug standards.
• Potential impact on prices: Although Ladybug is celebrated for its low price policy, further strengthening its dominant position on the marketplace could in the long word weaken competitive pressure, which is not always beneficial to client portfolios.
• The future of hypermarkets: The Ladybug focuses on the discount format. Taking over Carrefour's large hypermarkets would be a challenge for her and could lead to their division into smaller premises or a complete change in profile.

For now, all these scenarios stay in the sphere of analysis and speculation. However, the signals from Jeronimo Martins' office are clear. The company is determined to grow and acquisitions become a viable tool to accomplish this goal. The next months will show whether the aggressive Ladybug plan will enter into force and forever change the trade map in Poland.