We Are Disrupting Customer Retail Experience in Pakistan: Country Manager Carrefour

ProPakistani recently interviewed Mr. Umer Lodhi, Country Manager of Carrefour Pakistan, at Majid Al Futtaim Retail. Mr. Lodhi has over 26 years of management experience in various capacities and assumed his current role in August 2021.

The below-edited excerpts from the interview give highlights of the discussion on Carrefour’s presence in Pakistan, its collaboration with McDonald’s, future growth plans, and the evolving aspects of the modern retail sector.

1. Please tell us briefly about Carrefour Pakistan and its association with the UAE-based group Majid Al Futtaim?

Majid Al Futtaim is the leading shopping malls, communities, retail, and leisure pioneer across the Middle East, Africa, and Asia and the exclusive franchisee to operate Carrefour in over 30 countries across the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, that fully owns the operations in the region.

Majid Al Futtaim operates over 375 Carrefour stores in 17 countries, serves more than 750,000 customers daily, and employs over 37,000 colleagues. In 2009, it expanded its retail operations in Pakistan through the brand Hyperstar, which introduced modern retail to the country.

Hyperstar was later rebranded to Carrefour in December 2018, and currently, nine of the Carrefour stores are being operated in different cities. Its vast reach provides an elevated shopping experience through the delivery of exceptional value to all its customers.

2. What new retail experiences can be expected by the Pakistani customers through the recent collaboration between Carrefour and McDonald’s Pakistan?

This unique partnership, whereby both entities have agreed to host each other’s retail spaces at suitable locations, will see McDonald’s opening in a Carrefour hypermarket offering a dual shopping and out-of-home dining experience at the same location.

The partnership also reflects Carrefour’s vision to constantly deliver exceptional value to all shoppers by creating unique experiences and great moments for them. Both Carrefour and McDonald’s in Pakistan will manage and represent their identities independently at these shared ventures while exploring further collaborative opportunities with each other that will upgrade the shopping experience for a broader group of customers.

3. While both entities are multinational companies, what can be the expected impact of this collaboration on the economy and increase in FDI?

The collaboration will benefit both entities as we work towards expanding our customer outreach and retail offering into new geographic markets through our modern retail infrastructure.

The rise in consumer spending introduced by greater shopping convenience and the declining fear of the virus due to rising vaccinations rates will drive more business for the Pakistani economy.

It is likely that by the end of this year, the country will inch closer to what it was before the pandemic, and increased consumer spending at these collaborative outlets will have a positive impact on the economy.

Such collaborations are also vital for the survival, recovery, and eventual growth of local businesses and suppliers. Therefore, it can be said that these types of alliances promote a sense of security within the business community, and in bringing people, enterprises, and industries together to support the local economy.

The snowball effect then leads to higher chances of direct investment opportunities.

4. What is the future expansion roadmap for Carrefour Pakistan?

Majid Al Futtaim has already invested a total of PKR 9.3 billion in Pakistan between 2009-2021. Currently, it owns and operates a total of nine Carrefour stores that span across Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad & Faisalabad, with the last one opening amid the pandemic.

Given the encouraging economic indicators of the country, Majid Al Futtaim plans to expand its retail footprint in the country with the opening of multiple new stores in the coming year, and likewise its cumulative investment in the next five years.

We are now focused on growing in tier-two cities such as Gujranwala, Hyderabad, and Multan, as smaller cities are transforming into resilient growth centers with their own consumer preferences.

People from these cities have a growing appetite to shop at organized retail markets, however, they usually need to visit tier-one cities to get to them.

As a forward-thinking retailer, Carrefour Pakistan will be following a structured approach to ride the next wave of retail growth in these cities so that customers can experience greater convenience and accessibility.

There is also a clear emphasis on developing our e-commerce platform in every city we operate in, as we can observe incredible growth ever since its launch in March 2020.

5. How is Carrefour leading in the market against its competition and what differentiates it in customer offering?

As an international retailer, we greatly appreciate the healthy competition in the retail space offered by Pakistan and fully embrace it. Carrefour caters to a wide variety of customer segments by offering unbeatable choices, quality, and value at the best prices.

We pioneer tomorrow’s retail by using data to create tech-driven experiences for customers. Most of our total business turnover is generated from the consumer goods and fresh produce categories which are of the highest quality.

Our stores are always stocked with fresh, and locally sourced produce through a network of dedicated suppliers. Another reason for our thriving customer base is our best-in-class shopper experience.

6. How does Carrefour Pakistan ensure that its fresh food products reach the customers in the best possible state?

When it comes to fresh food, especially meat, fruits, and vegetables, we have the most stringent specifications in place to ensure that our food quality and safety aren’t compromised at any stage.

From ensuring that the meat offered by Carrefour is sourced from animals slaughtered as per Halal rules, to chicken fed only on vegetable-based proteins, we remain vigilant to see our consumers enjoy the freshest and tastiest products reaching from farms to their plates.

This also includes meeting all the international food safety standards, warranting traceability through our food safety-compliant suppliers, efficient labeling systems, and best-in-class cold storage.

For retaining optimum food freshness from slaughterhouses to display cases, we make sure that the storage temperature is constantly maintained at 4°C.

We also continue to invest in our logistics systems so that the products offered at our stores, when ordered online, reach the consumers in the same highest quality state through our temperature-controlled delivery vehicles.

By consistently providing quality products over the years, Carrefour Pakistan has gained the trust of its consumers as the most reliable brand for fresh foods.

7. In the current testing times of Covid-19, how is Carrefour ensuring a safe customer experience, and what are your plans of making the delivery service more accessible in the areas currently being served?

We have strict hygiene and safety protocols reinforced across all our stores in the country to ensure our customers have the safest shopping experience with us.

These measures include ongoing cleaning of floors in areas with fresh foods, cleaning of all walls, work surfaces, and trolleys in the parking bays multiple times during the day.

For all online orders, we guarantee that all delivery drivers and food packers abide by strict hygiene standards by wearing gloves and masks for customer safety.

Considering the Covid-19 outbreak, our ‘Click and Collect’ service marks the evolution of our digital offering, as customers are given the flexibility to shop online and collect their orders from stores by choosing their preferred time.

We have also recently increased our online product range from 9,000 items to more than 11,000 products and are currently doing same-day deliveries in 350 areas of Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad.

To that end, we will keep expanding our delivery network with the improved product range and delivery times. This is our mission as we continue our commitment to serving the people and communities we operate in by offering them the best quality products at unbeatable prices.