“We are very clear that maintaining competitive prices is the only way to maintain the market.”

“Maintaining prices is the only way to maintain the market.” Consum CEO Antonio Rodríguez Lázaro points to the cooperative supermarket chain’s “price containment” policy as one of the keys to its good results. The Valencian cooperative increased sales by 13.6% and increased its profits by 75% last year, the final year of its predecessor Juan Luis Durich as director.

The head of the chain set a target for 2024: “We continue to make efforts to adjust costs and contain price policies,” which last year resulted in 40 million euros due to a decrease in gross profit of 1%. The past four years of pandemic and inflation have “tested our organization in many ways,” he emphasized when presenting the results. The CEO insists on the social nature of the co-op in terms of prices and a clear commitment to its own brand, which customers are demanding more of in times of economic uncertainty.

Fiscal year 2023 “was marked by high inflation, rising costs driven by rising input prices and rising production costs.” “We are calm because the distribution sector is the most competitive in Europe, prices are the lowest, and we are very clear that maintaining competitive prices is the only way to maintain the market. Our prices are competitive, just like the best on the market,” said the general director of Consum.

Although the calculation figures are related to inflation, he emphasized that the cooperative has “won loyalty,” increasing the number of customers by 4% and sales by 6.5%, while in the national market as a whole, these sales grew by an average of 0.9%. .

One of the keys to increasing profits is reducing energy costs: as detailed, they have reached an agreement with Endesa to source their electricity from solar farms, have installed panels in supermarkets and are keen to ensure their supply comes from renewable sources. sources. The agreement, which covers the next two decades, will allow the grid to stabilize energy costs.

Regarding cooperative workers, Rodríguez emphasizes that Consum has already introduced a five-day working day across its entire network of stores and platforms, “becoming the first company in this sector.” retail implement this conciliatory measure in all of its stores.” More than 18,000 employees took advantage of this measure.

In 2023, Consum created 1,879 new jobs, an increase of 9.7%, resulting in a workforce of 21,216. The CEO explained that projections for this year will be for the creation of a “similar” number of jobs, which he considers conservative.