Competitiveness

The positive environment at the end of 2012 gave way to more challenges in 2013. As such, the word of the year was competitiveness, to increase the flow of customers in the stores and, thus, win gains in market share.

With initiatives to optimize expenses toward gains in efficiency at all the businesses, the fruits were reinvested in the competitiveness of prices, principally at retail food, with a structured movement to reduce prices throughout the mix (notable, monitorable and, for the first time, in the other products that make up the mix), generating positive perceptions among consumers.

The investment in organic growth also was an important strategic driver during the year, which allowed GPA to enter into new marketplaces, principally with Assaí’s self-service wholesale format, and expand Minimercado Extra’s proximity format in the city of São Paulo.

As a result, the Group was able, notwithstanding the harsher environment, to meet the challenges and attain gains in efficiency, broadening its footprint in various regions of the country and capturing market share in the different businesses.

The multi-channel approach

Beyond making good on its strategy of gains through competitiveness, GPA in 2013 definitively reinforced its multi-channel approach as a strategic priority for the Company’s sustainable growth.

During the year, it took a series of actions toward integrating the businesses, pursuing synergies and creative solutions to make consumer’s shopping experiences increasingly practical and convenient.

The results attained during the year reflect the boldness of the strategies that were adopted and positioned GPA as a pioneer of the multi-channel approach in Brazil, with consistent and growing results.

Another initiative was the formation of an executive office oriented toward consolidating the multi-channel concept among the Group’s different businesses, strengthening synergies, profitability and the benefits for customers, with cross-cutting actions in four areas: Marketing; Logistics; Information Technology and Strategic Planning.

In addition to making it possible to capture synergies at each business, the goal is to pursue Group-wide gains in operating efficiency, which permit funding the implementation of an aggressive growth strategy, based on a series of initiatives:

> Combined procurement with economies of scale.

> Shared logistics assets and infrastructure.

> Integrated marketing.

> Dissemination of innovative actions such as the "Store Take-Out" and "Electronic Catalog," facilitating consumer access to the products marketed through the Group’s different formats.