Grupo IFA held its Annual Shareholders Meeting, at which the results for the 2018 period were presented. The company reported consolidated turnover of 24,361 million Euro. Of this figure, 12,925 million was generated through consolidated sales in Spain, reflecting 4.6% growth with respect to 2017, with compound growth of 4.5% in the last six years. In the national market, IFA has increased its market share in value in the supermarket channel by a percentage point in the 2012-2018 period, reaching 15.8% in 2018, with some 14.1% of the self-service total, according to data from the Nielsen consultancy firm.
The growth of over 43% in the volume of consolidated business with respect to the previous period is influenced by the fact that IFA has entered the Italian market, thanks to the incorporation of VéGé Group within its Committee of International Purchasers. This incorporation fits within the international programme, part of the 2020 Strategic Plan, and is an opportunity for brands seeking to develop in the south of Europe, improve their competitive position, and promote a long-term commercial offer providing greater value for the consumer.
As a result, Grupo IFA closed the 2018 period with a commercial surface area of 6.0 million square metres, thanks to a network of establishments located in Spain, Portugal and Italy. Through this, the Group reached a market share of 12.4% of the commercial surface area in the south of Europe.
In the national market the Group has a network of 6,116 stores, with a commercial surface area of 3.7 million square metres, which provides a market share by surface area of 18.5% in the retail channel, and 30.9% in the wholesale channel. The company leads in surface area in 17 provinces, including Madrid and Barcelona.
The set of companies within the Group provide work for 122,934 people. Of those, 78,924 are employees in Spain, signifying an interannual growth of 8.7% and 6,317 new jobs. In fact, IFA partners have now been consistently creating jobs for six consecutive years. In the latest period, growth in contracting was more than double that achieved in 2017, which was 3.9%.
The figure for centralised payment, which measures consumption by suppliers passing through the Group, has grown 2.4%, and has reached 5,958 million Euro. This gives IFA RETAIL, S.A. a significant net figure for the business of 765 million Euro, signifying interannual growth of 4.6%.
Grupo IFA business model remains aligned to current trends in the sector. Proximity, fresh food and consumer capacity for choice were identifying markers when the Group was founded over 50 years ago, and these continue to provide a response to the needs and preferences of the current and future consumer. In 2018, the increase in the consumer’s capacity to choose was strengthened through joint growth in the manufacturers’ brands, a segment in which IFA has gained 2.2 points in market share in the last six years, and has doubled its earnings with respect to the total national market. The surge in own brands in other business models, added to the backing by the Group for innovation by manufacturers, has provided a market share of 23.8% in manufacturers' brands in the supermarket channel.
The director general of Grupo IFA, Juan Manuel Morales, at the Annual Shareholders Meeting, highlighted the fact that, "the results from 2018 reaffirm the leadership of a business model that is almost unique in Europe, which features regional champions, within the context of huge competition. It is a model which is gaining ground in the market thanks to the consistency, coherence and long-term vision of its entrepreneurs. In 2018, we strengthened our alliance with manufacturers in seeking to become their first choice in the creation of value and the growth of categories".
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Santos Ortega
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Email: santos@santosortega.es