Ahold announces revised strategy

Ahold is to sell its US wholesale operation US Foodservice, the company announced today. US Foodservice, bought in 2001 for €8bn, was at the centre of the book-keeping fraud which cost Ahold’s former CEO and CFO their jobs.


A number of shareholders have been pressuring Ahold to sell off the unit. Ahold is also to sell retail operations in Poland and Slovakia, and return €2bn to shareholders.
Highlights:
– Divest US Foodservice.
– Appoint both a European and US Chief Operating Officer.
– Reduce operating costs by €500m by end of 2009.
– Cut Group Support Office costs by 50% by end of 2008.
– Divest Tops and retail operations in Poland and Slovakia .
– Sell holding in Jerónimo Martins Retail.
– Implement brand improvement and value repositioning.
– Reaffirm targets as retail net sales growth of 5% and retail operating margin of 5%.
– Return approximately €2bn to shareholders and reduce debt by approximately €2bn, following divestments.

Thank you for donating to DutchNews.nl.

We could not provide the Dutch News service, and keep it free of charge, without the generous support of our readers. Your donations allow us to report on issues you tell us matter, and provide you with a summary of the most important Dutch news each day.

Make a donation