Marketing efforts came in the sense of calming and bringing psychological safety amidst a scenario of uncertainties
Inflation empties the supermarket cart and lights the red light on retail sales. According to the Broad Consumer Price Index (IPCA) released by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), the accumulated is 12.13% in the last 12 months. The struggle made Carrefour freeze the prices of around six thousand private label items, promoting quality at an average price that is 30% more affordable compared to leading products, in addition to offering predictability.
“The marketing efforts came in the sense of calming down and bringing psychological safety amidst a scenario of uncertainties”, explains Daniel Milagres, Carrefour’s marketing director, who took office in the middle of the pandemic. The private label’s share of the retailer’s net sales grew by 50% in the last two years. From 2018 to 2021, representation jumped from 12.7% to 19.4%.
The strategy maintains good neighborly with the industry. “The private label is placed as an option, and we do not fail to promote partners and leaders. The relationship is one of closeness and understanding”, assures Milagres. At the end of the consumer relationship, Carrefour prepares teams to approach the store floor, involving changes ranging from the weight of products or packaging to the transfer of prices, maintaining a transparent flow of information. “We are a link in the same chain, it is not possible to transfer the responsibility to the clients”, comments Milagres.
The day of the fair, held on Wednesdays and Thursdays, and the basic food basket also gained attention, welcoming the global concept of Act for food, whose purpose is to bring quality food at affordable prices. In Brazil, Carrefour works with Publicis, which takes care of branding. It also operates a media and martech area, which has been changing the way of doing retail. Five years ago, 41% of the marketing budget went to brochure printing.
Today, delivery is via WhatsApp or the store’s QR code, and the automation of behavioral studies makes it possible to assemble assertive offers. In the last two years, Carrefour has already saved 96,000 trees. “Brazil is recognized as a global case of digitization”, reveals Milagres. The content and creation in-house, with more than 50 people, prepares pieces contemplating the consumer’s purchase journey in the omnichannel environment.
Carrefour still brings the soul of the marketer to the business. Each store has a profile on social networks. The digital manager, an employee of the establishment, acts as an influencer, interacting with the community. It also helps to decipher preferences, from the hypermarket to the convenience, wholesale or e-commerce models.
“Consumers increasingly mix channels, but the hypermarket is still one of our strengths”, points out Milagres. Whatever the choice, the Faz Carrefour invitation permeates the entire network. The phrase did not leave people’s mouths and returned as the brand’s official signature after ten years.
Transparency
The death of João Alberto Silveira Freitas in a Carrefour store in Porto Alegre, on November 19, 2020, left lessons, and has been transforming the brand into an agent of change. The company must add R$ 144 million in the fight against structural racism in Brazil over three years.
Among black entrepreneurship and leadership development programs, Carrefour has already distributed more than ten thousand scholarships, accelerated the careers of 300 professionals and trained employees, in addition to internalizing 600 security agents. The supply chain was redesigned to absorb small black entrepreneurs, but the transformation is ongoing.