Grupo Éxito Surpasses COP 10.2 Trillion in Operational Income and Has 22% Net Profit

 

2012 Net Revenues was COP 10.2 billion, with an increase of 15.7% compared to 2011.

• In 2012 Grupo Éxito generated 3,478 new jobs, closing the year with a total of 36,950 direct employees in 82 Colombian cities.
• Close to 2,500 employees went from a fixed-term contract to an indefinite-term contract, thanks to changes in the Company’s hiring policy.
• Grupo Éxito opened 86 stores and entered to 15 new mid-sized cities in Colombia, generating development and opportunities for those populations to progress.
• The Board of Directors announced that current Chief Executive Officer, Gonzalo Restrepo López, expressed his wishto step-down from the positionhe has held for 22 years as head of the Company. The Board of Directors sincerely congratulated the man who made Grupo Éxito the leading retail company in Colombia.
• During the Board meeting, Carlos Mario Giraldo was appointed as the new Chief Executive Officer of the Company as a result of an impeccable five-year transition process.
• Likewise, the Board of Directors appointed Filipe Da Silva Chief Financial Officer, replacing Christophe Hidalgo, who left the position last October to work for Pao de Açucar, a Grupo Casino subsidiary in Brazil.
• The Board of Directors approved a proposal of a 22% dividend per share increase. This proposal will be presented at the General Shareholders’ Meeting on March 19.

Grupo Éxito ended 2012 with positive results, which confirm the Company’s strength and continuous growth in the retail sector. The Company closed the year with COP 10,229,673 million in consolidated Net Revenues , a 22% increase in Net Income, and 8.4% of EBITDA margin.

“The Company’s good results during 2012 are thanks to the most aggressive expansion plan in its history, which enabled the opening of 86 stores, both in big cities and also for the first time, in 15 mid-sized cities, to benefit Colombian communities thanks to the development and progress the opening of each Grupo Éxito store brings. Likewise, the Company’s commercial activities and loyalty programs, along with several real estate projects and e-commerce strategies, which have made the Company a leader in the Colombian market, played an important role in its operation,” said Grupo Éxito´s CEO Gonzalo Restrepo López.

During the Board of Director’s meeting, there were several important announcements. Mr. Gonzalo Restrepo López announced that he will be leaving the position he has held for 22 years as Chief Executive Officer (see attached Press Release). Mr. Restrepo will leave the Company after the next General Shareholders’ Meeting to be held on March 19 and Mr. Carlos Mario Giraldo, current Chief Operating Officer for the Retail Business, will take his place as new CEO. The Board of Directors also announced that Mr. Gonzalo Restrepo López will continue performing as Company Consultant.

Likewise, Filipe DaSilva was appointed as new Chief Financial Officer, replacing Christophe Hidalgo, who left the position last October. In addition, the Board presented a proposal to increase the dividend payment by share by 22% which will be voted in the next General Shareholders’ Meeting to be held on March 19 at the Company´s Headquarters in Envigado.

2012 Facts and Numbers

Financial Results (Numbers in COP in Millions)

 

Fourth Trimester

October to December 2012 

Accrued to December

31,2012

Variation

2012 Vs. 2011

Operational Income

2.938.673

10.229.673

15,7%

Gross Profit

797.588

2.669.801

19,5%

Operational Profit

205.086

494.167

16,7%

Net Profit

220.552

475.305

22,0%

EBITDA

297.767

858.725

15,6%

 

Company Expansion Plan

In 2012 Grupo Éxito opened 86 new stores among 38 Éxito supermarkets, 44 Surtimax and 4 Carulla stores, for a total of 479 stores and completed, 427 in Colombia and 52 in Uruguay. In addition, the Company opened 15 stores for the first time in the mid-sized cities of Turbo, Turbaco, Fredonia, Florencia, Carepa, Baranoa, Aranzazu, Amagá, San Jerónimo, San Pedro, La Estrella, Malambo, La Calera, Villamaría and Girardota.

With a total of 15 conversions, the Company finished the brand streamlining plan unifying the Cafam, Pomona and Ley brands to the Éxito, Carulla and Surtimax brands.

An E-Commerce Proposal

In 2012 éxito.com sales grew 63% compared to 2011 and orders increased by 104%. The site received 26 million visits and it is currently the number one site in sales in key categories such as television sets, tablets and laptops, among others. The Company received the e-Commerce award for its innovation as the leading company in Colombia.

Consolidation of the Textile Business

Some of the textile private labels were consolidated in 2012. Priority was given to national production, having 90% of all garments made in Colombia. Thanks to this initiative, the good performance of Grupo Éxito’s textile company Didetexco S.A., and with the support of national suppliers, the Company actively contributed to 130 garment factories generating 6.000 direct hires.

Viva Shopping Malls

With nearly 6,500 m2 and around 70 sites, Viva Laureles shopping mall in Medellín is the first opening under the Viva brand. Viva Envigado “stage zero” finished with the opening of a Homecenter store, and the construction of Viva Sincelejo and Viva Villavicencio is underway and forecasted to open to the public in 2013 and in 2014 respectively.

Sustainability Highlights

• Employment: Grupo Éxito contributes to the development of Colombia, promoting the hiring of Colombian personnel, especially in the regions where stores are being opened. With 36,950 direct hires, the Company is the largest private sector employer in Colombia. In addition, Grupo Éxito invested more than COP 111,000million in benefits for employees and their families.
• Social Investment: Grupo Éxito supports attention to early childhood through Fundación Éxito, helping children from zero to five years old, pregnant women, and nursing mothers. The investment in 2012 benefited 35,134 children from 65 Colombian municipalities through alliances with 295 institutions.
• Support to suppliers: As part of its commercial ally support program, 12 Grupo Éxito private label suppliers travelled to France sponsored by the Company and the Casino Group to become familiar with the good practices applied in the production, exhibition and development of private label products. Also, 11 suppliers were recognized at the “Proveedores de Éxito Award”.

Grupo Exito was recognized by the Great Place to Work Institute Survey 2012 as the second best company to work for in Colombia, in the category of companies with more than 500 employees.