Message from our CEO
O
I am pleased to report that 2008 was another
successful year for Ahold. Despite the turbulent
economic conditions around the world, we made
good progress with our strategy for profitable
growth, increased sales and operating income
and strengthened our competitive position.
"We made good progress
with our strategy for
profitable growth,
increased sales and
operating income and
strengthened our
competitive position."
AHOLD ANNUAL REPORT 2008 3
We completed our Value Improvement Program at Stop Shop and Giant-Landover
in the United States, including the introduction of new branding, a new store look
and new logos. The program to reinvigorate these powerful local consumer brands
has gained momentum. As anticipated, sales performance and margins improved
during the year. In addition, Giant-Carlisle had another outstanding year and
continued to grow and gain market share in a highly competitive environment.
In the Netherlands, Albert Heijn performed exceptionally well again, growing sales
and market share and maintaining a strong margin. We also took an important step
by selling our 73 percent stake in Schuitema which enabled us to acquire 56 stores,
all of which have now been converted to Albert Heijn stores. In the Czech Republic
and Slovakia, we continued our repositioning and rebranding programs. Our
operations are not yet where we want them to be and the management focus
for 2009 will be to drive sales, cut costs, and close underperforming stores.
It was a challenging year for ICA, our joint venture in Scandinavia and the Baltics.
Although sales increased, operating income for the ICA group decreased slightly,
primarily because of losses at ICA Norway.
www.ahold.com/reports2008
