METRO Wholesale

The operating segments METRO Wholesale Germany, METRO Wholesale Western Europe (excluding Germany), METRO Wholesale Russia, METRO Wholesale Eastern Europe (excluding Russia), METRO Wholesale Asia and METRO Wholesale Others, are aggregated as ‘METRO Wholesale’ taking account of consolidations.

As an omnichannel operator, METRO Wholesale combines a wide network of modern wholesale stores with a wide-ranging delivery service (FSD). It is an internationally leading player in this field. With its segments METRO Wholesale Germany, METRO Wholesale Western Europe (excluding Germany), METRO Wholesale Russia, METRO Wholesale Eastern Europe (excluding Russia) and METRO Wholesale Asia, METRO Wholesale is active in 35 countries. It operates 769 wholesale stores in Europe and Asia under its brands METRO and MAKRO. Its more than 24 million commercial customers worldwide are mainly hotels, restaurants, catering companies, independent retailers, as well as service providers and authorities, to which METRO Wholesale offers a portfolio of products and solutions that has been tailored to their specific requirements.

In the area of Food Service Distribution (FSD), METRO Wholesale maintains a strong international presence with its METRO Delivery Service and the specialist companies Classic Fine Foods, Pro à Pro and Rungis Express. Classic Fine Foods is an Asian delivery specialist for a wide range of deli food. The company’s customers include 5-star hotels and upmarket restaurants in Asia and the Middle East. Pro à Pro delivers products to commercial customers across France, in particular in the field of corporate catering, canteens and system catering. Rungis Express is an important upmarket food delivery company in Germany that mainly caters to HoReCa customers.

Like-for-like sales of METRO Wholesale increased by 1.3% in financial year 2017/18. The growth was particularly pronounced in Eastern Europe (excluding Russia) and Asia. Sales in local currency rose 1.5%. As a result of unfavourable exchange rate developments especially in Russia, Asia and Eastern Europe, reported sales decreased by 1.4% to €29.5 billion.

In Germany, like-for-like sales in financial year 2017/18 rose by 0.8%, while reported sales rose by 0.1%.

In 2017/18, like-for-like sales in Western Europe (excluding Germany) decreased by 0.4%. Reported sales increased by 1.7% to €10.6 billion. The acquisition of Pro à Pro in the first half of the year, which has been contributing to the overall sales since 1 February 2017, was particularly noticeable here.

In Russia, like-for-like sales in financial year 2017/18 declined significantly by 7.0%, corresponding to a decline of 8.0% in local currency. Following challenges in the first half of the year, the initiated business transformation measures started bearing fruit in the second half. As a result of negative currency effects, the reported sales decreased by 16.3%.

In Eastern Europe (excluding Russia), like-for-like sales in the financial year were clearly positive with an increase of 6.1%. Ukraine, Turkey and Romania especially contributed to this with 2-digit growth rates each. In local currency, sales grew by 5.6%. Due to negative currency effects, especially in Turkey, reported sales increased solely by 1.0%.

Like-for-like sales in Asia increased by 4.0% in financial year 2017/18. All countries of the segment contributed to this. Sales in local currency rose 4.4%. As a result of unfavourable exchange rate developments, reported sales decreased by 1.4%.

METRO Wholesale’s delivery business showed a very positive momentum, with sales rising by approximately 14% to €5.3 billion in financial year 2017/18. In particular, the acquisition of Pro à Pro in the previous year contributed to this increase. As a result, the delivery business now accounts for 18% of total sales.

As of 30 September 2018, the store network comprised 769 locations (30/9/2017: 759 locations). 14 stores opened in financial year 2017/18 (1 store each in Belgium and France, 3 in India, 4 in Russia, 5 in China), and 4 stores closed (1 store each in China, Germany, Italy and Poland).

The EBITDA excluding earnings contributions from real estate transactions reached a total of €1,321 million in financial year 2017/18 (2016/17: €1,413 million). This corresponds to a change adjusted for currency effects of €−35 million compared to the same period in the previous year. The decline in Russia in the amount of €79 million (€−46 million after adjustment for currency effects) is predominantly attributable to sales and margins and includes a positive once-off effect in the amount of approximately €10 million. The positive development in Western Europe and Germany partially offset this decline. Adjusted for currency effects, Eastern Europe (€+11 million) and Asia (€+8 million) also developed positively. In the METRO Wholesale Others segment, increased IT expenses during the current financial year and income from the reversal of provisions in the previous year were the main reasons for the result (€−36 million adjusted for currency effects).

The earnings contributions from real estate transactions declined by €57 million compared with the previous year. While in financial year 2016/17 a major transaction took place in China, a real estate transaction in Spain contributed particularly to the result. In total, EBITDA fell to €1,380 million (2016/17: €1,528 million).