Episode 8 of 10: Key Retailers by Format
Success is increasingly concentrated, with format leaders building powerful competitive moats in each of the six grocery retail formats, with the exception of Supermarkets.
Note: All format data is based on the head office location of the top 100 retailers.
Format Dominance
Warehouse Clubs: The most highly concentrated format exhibiting strong growth and above average revenue characteristics that are driven by operational scale and efficiency. Costco dominates with an 81.8% share of format sales. If Sam’s Club (part of Walmart) were a standalone retailer, it would be the #2 player in this segment.
Multi-format: This format has the highest average revenue per retailer, which reflects the scaling and diversification benefits of multiformat and omnichannel operations. Walmart represents nearly 62% of this segment's revenues, followed by Carrefour and Tesco with 8.1% share each.
Discount: Strong growth in constant currency terms reflects ongoing strong consumer demand for value alongside store network growth (especially in urban centres). Schwarz Group (34.2%) and Aldi (24.5%) together control nearly 60% of format revenues. This segment is highly concentrated, with the top 5 retailers covering over 80% of sales.
Fragmentation vs. Concentration
Supermarkets: The largest but least concentrated format, where the top 5 retailers account for only about one-third of sales. Kroger is the largest at 11.2%, followed by Ahold Delhaize (7.1%) and Albertsons (6.1%). Strong growth in some regional players outside the top 5 (e.g. Reliance Retail and DMart in Asia Pacific, Cencosud in Latam and Migros Ticaret in Europe all enjoyed strong double-digit growth) helped support overall supermarket format growth.
Convenience: This is the fastest growing format in constant currency terms in the global top 100. APAC based retailer Seven & I is the dominant force with a 43.4% share of the format. APAC retailers overall are strongly represented in Convenience retail, representing 3 of the top 5 players and 7 of the total of 9 convenience retailers in the Top 100 global grocery retailers.
Hypermarkets: Underlying growth pressures are embedded in the Hypermarket format linked to longer term format shifts and competition (for example vs Omnichannel retailers, Discounters and Warehouse Clubs). Target represents over 52% of format revenues, with the top 5 covering around 80% of sales, resulting in a similar concentration profile to the Discount format.
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