Supermarket chain Rewe boss expects further price increases
Düsseldorf · Inflation is already high - and food prices could rise further, says the head of one of Germany's largest food retailers.
An end to price increases in the German grocery trade is not in sight, according to Rewe CEO Lionel Souque. "We are currently receiving notices of new price increases from manufacturers every week," the executive said Wednesday evening at the Wirtschaftspublizistische Vereinigung (Business Journalists Association) in Düsseldorf. The underlying reason, he said, is the rising cost of energy, raw materials, logistics and personnel.
"We don't just go ahead with every price increase, but check whether it is justifiable," Souque said. The retail giant, he said, fights back resolutely if it considers the surcharges to be unjustified. Among multinational consumer goods manufacturers in particular, there are those who want to profit from the current price surge, he said. "We are fighting back brutally against that," Souque said.
The CEO stressed that Rewe itself was also feeling the dramatic rise in energy costs. For a supermarket covering 1000 square meters, he said, they had risen from 80,000 euros a year to 140,000 euros.
According to Souque, however, Rewe does not intend to pass on all price increases to customers. The company will forego a gross profit in the mid three-digit million euro range this year in order to at least somewhat limit the price increases.
(Orig. text: dpa / Translation: Carol Kloeppel)
