Next year, Colruyt will open its fifth supermarket in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. In the meantime, the retailer is thinking of launching its organic chain Bio-Planet there as well.
Adapt to the Luxembourg market
Colruyt will open its fifth branch in Luxembourg, in Pommerloch, by the summer of next year at the latest. “Our ambition is to continue to open stores and put our stores on the Luxembourg map,” says country manager David Legrand to Paperjam. “Our ambition is to have about ten Colruyt supermarkets in Luxembourg over the next 10 years, or 6 more than today”. The retailer sees potential around Luxembourg City but also in the South.
The majority of the range in the stores (85%) comes from Belgium. 15% is specifically aimed at local customers, with Portuguese, Italian and (of course) Luxembourg products. “We want to continue to offer products that can be found on the local market. We don’t just want to keep our Belgian concept. We are aware that we have to adapt to the Luxembourg market. We have only been here for 12 years and we continue to learn continuously.”
The business model, on the other hand, is not fundamentally different from that in Belgium. “We are probably the only food retailer in Luxembourg who doesn’t bake bread in-store.” However, Legrand does not rule out the possibility that this will change in the coming months. “There are other things we are thinking about, such as expanding our range of organic products in the stores. We are also working on a Bio-Planet project in Luxembourg.”
