In the last few days, there has been a lot of talk about Jumbo stores. In a positive way, especially following the opening of the chain’s largest store in the country, in a delayed way because one of the stores that opened here is a “first” in our country, but also in a less positive way when we mention a former boss of the chain who disappeared from the radar overnight for obscure reasons.
In any case, the main thing that all Jumbo stores in the country have in common, which could be presented as a competitor to Colruyt, is that they are in Flanders. So far, the chain’s stores have only been found in the north of the country. And what about Wallonia? Already launched several years ago, we learned at the beginning of 2023 that the project was on hold. But it does not seem to have been completely abandoned.
Indeed, according to our colleagues at Gondola, Jumbo absolutely does not rule out the possibility of setting up in Wallonia. Inevitably, like all retailers, Jumbo has had to revise its ambitions downwards. While the figure of 100 stores within five years in Belgium was mentioned, Jumbo will be content with having 50 by the end of 2025, due to “sometimes fierce competition on the Belgian market”.
This is a first in our supermarkets: a chain of stores has decided to no longer offer promotions on this product!
And our beautiful region could well welcome one or more stores of the Dutch chain, even if “nothing is planned for the moment”, Peter Isaac, managing director for Belgium, told our colleagues. “We would first like to continue our development in Flanders, perhaps up to 100 stores. Setting up in Wallonia would be an additional complication that would distract us from Flanders. But I do not rule it out”, he added.
In short, there is hope, but we will have to be patient.
