Supermarkets are stagnating
Stationary retail has seen a stable development. The turnover of Migros supermarkets increased by 0.3% to 12.7 billion francs. Migros Online, for its part, saw its sales increase by 6% to 365 million.
“This development reassures us that we have made the right choice by focusing on our core business,” declared Mario Irminger, president of the general management of the Federation of Migros Cooperatives (FCM), quoted in the press release.
Excluding the independent company Migros Supermarché, retail sales increased by 3.3% to 9 billion francs, driven by strong online activity, notably with Galaxus (+17.2% to 2.9 billion). . Denner (+0.1% to 3.8 billion) and Migrolino (+0.4% to 800 million) saw their revenues rather stagnate.
Disposal of specialized markets not yet completed
In the non-food segment, the orange giant has carried out an all-out reorganization. In order to concentrate on its core business, namely supermarkets, the group sold Melectronics, SportX and Bike World.
The search for a suitable owner continues for Micasa and Do it +Garden while negotiations are underway in particular for Hotelplan, whose turnover increased by 3% to 1.8 billion. According to the German-speaking press, the tour operator would interest its German competitors Dertour and Hometogo.
The results for 2025 will no longer be affected by the losses caused by the sale of these specialized brands, it is further explained in the press release. Migros, however, did not disclose the shortfall of the aforementioned subsidiaries. However, in an interview given to the daily 24 hours At the beginning of January, Mario Irminger affirmed that the latter recorded “a loss of more than 200 million per year”.
-The number one retailer will publish its profit in March. This indicator deteriorated significantly in 2023, going from 459 million in 2022 to 175 million. The current reform should improve the net result in the medium term.
The other Swiss retail giant, Coop, also increased its turnover in 2024. Its revenues increased to 34.9 billion francs, up 0.6%.
“Indecent” cuts for Unia
The orange giant began the biggest transformation in its history in 2024, announcing in February the elimination of 1,500 positions. Some 726 jobs have already been lost so far.
This change took place on the eve of the 100th anniversary of the group founded in 1925 by Gottlieb Duttweiler. On this occasion, Migros transformed its name into “Merci” at the beginning of the year to “thank the Swiss population for their loyalty”. The logo has been partially adapted.
In view of the solid financial results, the Unia union maintains that the current job cuts appear “all the more indecent”. “Instead of these marketing actions, we want to implement concrete improvements for staff: increase salaries, reduce pressure on staff, respect their health and, above all, renounce layoffs,” explains Anne Rubin, co-responsible for retail at Unia.
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