Wednesday, September 29, 1999
Albert Heijn, the Dutch supermarket chain of Royal Ahold, will meet its 10% growth target for operating results again this year. Sales and market share will also increase during the fourth quarter. The article in this mornings Financieele Dagblad is incorrect and does not reflect Albert Heijns actual situation, says a spokesman for the company.
Based on developments over the past weeks and planned activities for the remainder of the year, Albert Heijn expects operating results growth to be at least as strong as in previous years. Ahold says that the remarks in the newspaper article on Albert Heijn logistics and labor costs are entirely incorrect. In the meetings referred to, logistics were not discussed, as distribution functions in an highly efficient way at Albert Heijn. At meetings with the Albert Heijn supermarket managers, new customer-focused activities for the fourth quarter were discussed, including the worldwide promotion with significant price-offs which began this week.
The Albert Heijn customer will see spectacular offers each week in the coming three months. The offers support sales and market share and will contribute to excellent results, says Ronald van Solt, President of Albert Heijn. In our organization, the mood is most positive. Our marketing plans for the fourth quarter and next year have been very well received by the supermarket managers. Of course there is a lot of work, but with everything now in the starting blocks, we expect to have another excellent year. The publication in this mornings newspaper in no way reflects the actual situation at Albert Heijn.