Press - 2011

12 October 2011

Third-quarter 2011 sales

Conlidated net sales
Consolidated net salesQ3 2011
In €m
% change QoQ
ReportedOrganic(1)
Total Continuing operations
France
International
8,705
4,737
3,968
21.2%
4.3%
50.1%
6.3%
2.3%
13.1%

(1) Based on comparable scope of consolidation and constant exchange rates.

 

Group consolidated net sales rose by a reported 21.2% in the third quarter of 2011.
Changes in the scope of consolidation added 16.6%, reflecting external growth in Brazil and Thailand and increased interest in GPA.
The currency effect had a negative 1.7% impact, primarily due to the depreciation of the Colombian, Thai and Brazilian currencies against the Euro. Higher petrol prices added 0.6% to growth, while the calendar effect was virtually neutral both in France (+0.1%) and in international operations (+ 0.4%).

 

Organic growth excluding petrol
Organic growth
excluding petrol
H1 2011Q3 2011
Total Continuing operations
France
International
6.3%
2.2%
12.9%
5.7%
1.2%
13.0%
Organic growth continued at a sustained pace of 5.7% (excluding petrol), in line with the first-half trend.

 

Sales growth (+4.3%) in France

In France, sales were up 4.3% in Q3 2011 on a reported basis and 2.3% on an organic basis of which 1.2% excluding petrol. Casino Group food market share was stable, and non-food sales (Géant + Cdiscount) were up +1.5%.

  • All the convenience formats saw an increase in organic sales excluding petrol (Monoprix +2%, Casino Supermarkets +1%, Franprix +0.9%, stable superettes) in a sign of their attractiveness to shoppers.
  • Leader Price’s organic sales were up 3.7%, led by a 0.7% growth in same-store sales and a rising contribution from expansion.
  • Géant continued to turn in a satisfactory performance in food (stable same-store sales), while market share held steady.
  • Cdiscount’s organic sales again surged by 15.4%, after rising 14% in the first half. The company is confirming its strong momentum which enables to strengthen its leadership in non-food e-commerce in France.
  • The very good Cdiscount’s performance enables the Group to grow cumulative non-food sales (Géant + Cdiscount) by 1.5%.

 

Strong organic growth (+13.1%) and buoyant operations in emerging markets

International operations continued to enjoy very high organic growth (13.1%), reflecting the powerful momentum of the Group’s banners in its four key countries (Brazil, Colombia, Thailand and Vietnam).

  • Organic growth in South America was a very robust 13.6%, lifted by a sustained increase in same-store sales and assertive expansion by GPA in Brazil and Exito in Colombia.
  • An acceleration in sales growth was confirmed in Asia, with organic sales up 15.3% (versus +10.9% in H1) on the back of a very good same-store performance by Big C in Thailand and continued remarkable growth in Vietnam.

Overall, international sales rose 50.1%, partly as a result of changes in the scope of consolidation, and accounted for 46% of the consolidated total versus 37% in Q3 2010.

Outlook

The Group is confident in its ability to deliver annual sales growth over 10% in the next three years.
It therefore confirms its 2011 targets:

  • Strengthen market share in France, in particular by continuing to expand in the convenience and discount formats.
  • Drive-up margin at Franprix-Leader Price.
  • Maintain strong and profitable organic growth in international markets.
  • Conduct disposals and capital increase programme of more than €1 billion.
  • Maintain a net debt-to-EBITDA ratio of less than 2.2x at year-end.
FRANCE

Sales in France rose 4.3% in Q3 2011. The scope effect coming from the consolidation of three Franprix-Leader Price franchisees is adding 2.0% and petrol sales another 1.1%.
Organic sales excluding petrol increased by 1.2%.

Net Sales, France
In € millionsThird Quarter
20102011% changeOrganic growth
excluding petrol
Net Sales, France4,540.34,737.04.3%1.2%
Franprix-Leader Price933.01,044.411.9%1.7%
Monoprix446.3455.52.1%2.0%
Casino France3,161.03,237.12.4%0.8%
Géant Casino HM1,440.71,463.11.6%-1.2%
 Casino SM943.4970.92.9%1.0%
Superettes426.8426.90.0%0.0%
Cdiscount & other activities350.1376.27.4%8.5%

 

Same-store sales
Same-store sales3rd Quarter 2011
% change% change excluding
petrol
Franprix-3.0%-3.0%
Leader Price0.7%0.7%
Monoprix1.0%0.9%
Géant Casino HM+1.0%-1.5%
Casino SM-0.1%-1.5%
  • Franprix-Leader Price

Reported Franprix-Leader Price sales increased by 11.9%, reflecting the consolidation of three franchisees and expansion.

Franprix’s total organic sales were up +0.9%.Expansion continued on schedule, with 11 openings during the period for a total of 34 openings since the beginning of the year. Sunday afternoon closures continued to weigh on same-store sales, which were down 3.0%.

Total Leader Price organic sales, up 3.7%, benefited from a greater contribution from expansion, with 21 stores openings since 1st of January. Same-store sales rose 0.7%. Leader Price’s market share has remained unchanged since the beginning of the year.

 

  • Monoprix

Monoprix recorded a 2.0% (excluding petrol) increase in total sales of which a +0.9% rise in same-store sales. The performance was very satisfactory in the food segment. Non-food sales were impacted by earlier clearance sales. Concerning textile sales in particular, warm weather in September had a negative impact on fall winter apparel sales. Monoprix is pursuing its expansion in new formats with the opening of 5 Monop in 3rd quarter.

 

  • Casino France

Géant
Total sales were up 1.6%, while same-store sales excluding petrol were down 1.5% due to lower non-food sales.
Performance in the food segment was satisfactory with stable same-store sales, which validated the banner’s commercial strategy, notably concerning promotions and loyalty programmes. Géant’s market share has remained stable since the beginning of the year.
Non-food sales were down 7.3%.In particular, September warm weather hurt apparel sales. Géant is continuing to deploy a strategy focused on selecting the most attractive categories of products, as well as multi-channel distribution (pick up of Cdiscount parcels weighing more than 30kg in Géant stores, distribution of Géant coupons on the Cdiscount site).

Cdiscount
Cdiscount continues to grow at a very fast pace, with organic sales up 15.4%. This performance reflects a successful combination of very competitive pricing policy and innovative sales initiatives. The leader in price image, Cdiscount is perceived as being 12% less expensive than the market (source OC&C). Home appliances and housewares continue to perform very well and the site is continuing to successfully develop new sections such as toys and jewellery.
Thanks to Cdiscount’s very strong sales level, total cumulative non-food sales by Géant and Cdiscount rose 1.5%.
The Group has stepped up deployment of its multi-channel strategy by extending distribution of parcels weighing more than 30 kg to 168 pick-up sites and introducing pick-up of packages weighing less than 30 kg in Franprix stores (65 stores as of end-September) hence bringing the total number of pick-up sites for parcels of less than 30 kg to 1,665.
The advertising sales platform and recently opened marketplace also offer Cdiscount new levers for growth.
Total sales from the other businesses (Cdiscount, Mercialys, Casino Caféteria and Banque Casino) were up 8.5% on an organic basis.

Casino Supermarkets
Total sales excluding petrol increased by 1.0%, while same-store sales declined by 1.5%.
6 stores were open since the beginning of the year. Market share was stable over the period and since the 1st of January.

Superettes
The Superettes recorded stable sales. Implementation of initiatives to increase the banner’s appeal is continuing. 3 stores under the new “Casino shopping” concept had been opened as of end of September and a differentiated selection by outlet had been deployed across all the store base.

INTERNATIONAL

International sales increased by 50.1% in the third quarter.
Changes in the scope of consolidation added 41.6%, while the currency effect had a negative impact of -4.7%.
Organic growth remained very high in both South America and Asia, for a 13.1% gain overall.

Q3 2011 sales : South America and Asia
Q3 2011 salesReported growthOrganic growthSame-store growth
South America56.5%13.6%10.8%
Asia44.1%15.3%5.8%

Operations in South America recorded organic sales growth of 13.6% thanks to sustained same-store growth and expansion in Brazil as well as in Colombia.

  • Same-store sales in Brazil were up 10.6%*.
    In the food segment, GPA Food sales rose +8.9%*, lifted in particular by a very good performance from Assai and the supermarkets as well as the success in conversion of Sendas and Comprebem stores in Extra and Pão de Açùcar, which has been finalized.
    In the non-food segment, Globex’s same-store sales (including from now on Casas Bahia from 1st July 2010) were up +12.5%*. E-commerce activities continue to record a very high growth level.
    Expansion continued, with six new stores opened during the quarter. Total sales increased by +55.9%* taking into account Casas Bahia sales.
  • Organic growth in Colombia was again very strong, driven by sustained growth in same-store sales that reflects the effective sales strategy deployed by Exito. The store conversion programme is almost completed and expansion has been stepped up with the opening of six Exito Express stores, one supermarket and six Surtimax during the third quarter.
    Exito’s capital increase, which was oversubscribed 2.6 times excluding Casino’s stake, was also a great success. Exito will now be able to accelerate its expansion plan on the Colombian market and finance the acquisition of Casino’s majority interest in Disco and Devoto, making Exito the Group’s development platform in Spanish-speaking Latin America.

In Asia, organic sales growth accelerated to 15.3% from 10.9% in the first half.

  • In Thailand, Big C posted accelerated organic growth, reflecting a very satisfactory same-store performance and a higher contribution from newly opened stores. One hypermarket and one Big C Market were opened in the third quarter. Development of new formats moved forward at a faster pace, with 18 new Mini Big Cs and 7 Pure. Two new hypermarkets and two Big C Markets are slated to open in the fourth quarter.
    Carrefour Thailand’s operations have been successfully integrated. The “One Company” target was met as of the end of June.
  • Operations in Vietnam enjoyed another quarter of very strong organic growth, led by brisk same-store sales and a significant contribution from expansion. Two New Cho convenience stores were opened during the period. Expansion will accelerate in the fourth quarter with the opening of five hypermarkets, for a total of 19 hypermarkets and 18 shopping malls by the end of the year.

Operations in the Indian Ocean performed satisfactorily, with sales up 3.6% on an organic basis of which +2.8% on a same-store basis.

* GPA and Globex reported data.

Main changes in the scope of consolidation

  • Consolidation of Casas Bahia by GPA, from 1 November 2010.
  • Consolidation of Carrefour Thailand’s operations by Big C, from 7 January 2011.
  • Full consolidation of three Franprix-Leader Price franchisees, from 1 February 2011.
  • Deconsolidation of one Franprix-Leader Price franchisee, from 1st of September 2011.
  • Increased economic interest in GPA to 43.1% as of 30 September 2011 (vs 33.7% as of 30 September 2010).
Sales from continuing operations
Third Quarter% change
2010
€m
2011
€m
in EurosAt constant
exchange rate
FRANCE4,540.34,737.04.3%4.3%
Of which:
Franprix – Leader Price933.01,044.411.9%11.9%
Monoprix446.3455.52.1%2.1%
Casino France3,161.03,237.12.4%2.4%
Géant Casino HM1,440.71,463.11.6%1.6%
Casino SM943.4970.92.9%2.9%
Superettes426.8426.90.0%0.0%
Other businesses350.1376.27,4%7,4%
INTERNATIONAL2,644.43,968.050.1%54.7%
Of which:
South America1,944,63,044.056.5%61.1%
Asia491,6708.644.1%51.2%
Other businesses208,2215.43.5%3.6%
SALES FROM
CONTINUING OPERATIONS
7,184,78,705.021.2%22.9%

 

Average exchange rates
Average exchange ratesH1 2010H1 2011Var.%9 months 109 months 11Var.%
Argentina (ARS/EUR)0.1950.176-9.5%0.1950.174-10.9%
Uruguay (UYP/EUR)0.0380.037-2.8%0.0380.037-1.6%
Thailand (THB/EUR)0.0230.023+1.7%0.0240.023-0.3%
Vietnam (VND/EUR) (x 1000)0.0410.035-14.2%0.0410.035-15.1%
Colombia (COP/EUR) (x 1000)0.3860.388+0.6%0.3970.390-1.8%
Brazil (BRL/EUR)0.4190.437+4.4%0.4270.436+2.2%
Analyst and Investor Contacts

Régine Gaggioli
rgaggioli@groupe-casino.fr
+33 1 53 65 64 17

Aline Nguyen
anguyen@groupe-casino.fr
+33 1 53 65 64 85

 

 

 

 

Publication

 

Publication

 

3 October 2011

The Casino group launches a universal debit card through its Banque Casino subsidiary in partnership with MasterCard

In response to customer expectations, the Casino group and MasterCard have joined forces to provide a non-credit payment card that offers a wealth of commitment-free benefits and services. In addition to earning “S’Miles” points at Casino outlets, the Casino MasterCard® earns points in any store where purchases are made. The Casino group is the only retail brand to provide a product of this kind.

A stand-out product that completes our loyalty programme
In launching this immediate debit card, backed by a loyalty programme of this type, the Casino group aims to revitalise its payment card offer and meet the expectations of its customers.
The Casino MasterCard offers the following advantages:

Loyalty: The card includes a universal programme that can earn S’Miles throughout France and abroad, regardless of where the purchases are made, and loyalty is three times better rewarded than with a traditional loyalty card in Casino outlets:
• 1 S’Miles per euro spent at Casino
• 1 S’Miles per 5 euros spent elsewhere

Simplicity: The consumer does not need to change banks. This is a genuine MasterCard with a simplified acceptance procedure and includes MasterCard’s support and insurance cover at a very competitive price (free for the first year, then € 16 per year – one of the cheapest on the market). Benefiting from the MasterCard acceptance network, it is accepted by more than 32.7 million merchants worldwide.

Innovation: The card is a real innovation as it makes customers’ daily lives easier, avoiding the need for them to keep several different loyalty cards in their wallets. In addition, it offers the MasterCard® PayPass™ service, enabling contactless payment for purchases of up to 25 euros with over 341,000 merchants worldwide.
It has been available since 28 September throughout the Casino hypermarket and supermarket networks.

About “S’Miles” reward points

S’Miles is a multi-partner loyalty programme.
Each partner brand rewards its customers for their purchases by enabling them to accumulate S’Miles reward points. The S’Miles earned can then be redeemed for credit vouchers or gifts.

In exchange for 800 S’Miles, customers can get an immediate 10 euro discount on purchases at Casino. They can also choose from a selection of over 100 gifts by logging onto “My card and my S’Miles” at www.casino.fr.

About Casino
The Casino group is a leading food retailer in France and internationally. Multi-format and multi-brand, it runs a network of 11,700 stores.
The Group generates 62% of its turnover and 59% of its operating income in France, and 38% of its turnover and 41% of its operating income abroad. It is present in Latin America (Brazil and Colombia) and Southeast Asia (Thailand and Vietnam).
As at 31 December 2010, the Group recorded a consolidated turnover of 29 billion euros and a net income (Group share) of 559 million euros. Casino is listed on the Paris Bourse.

About Banque Casino
Banque Casino is a subsidiary of the Casino group and the Crédit Mutuel Group. It develops and markets bancassurance products and services to Casino group customers: bank cards, consumer credit, insurance and pension products.
It markets its products in Casino Hypermarkets and Supermarkets, in Proximité outlets and on the Cdiscount website.
Banque Casino has designed this new card in partnership with Crédit Mutuel. By early 2012, the bank’s full range of financial products will be delivered by Crédit Mutuel.

About MasterCard
MasterCard (NYSE: MA) is a global payments and technology company. It operates the world’s fastest payments processing network, connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 210 countries and territories. MasterCard’s products and services make everyday commercial activities – such as shopping, travelling, running a business and financial management – easier, more secure and more efficient for everyone. For further information, go to www.mastercard.com. You can also follow us on Twitter: @mastercardnews or be part of the discussion on The Heart of Commerce Blog.

Press Contacts Casino:
Casino group: Frédéric Croccel – fcroccel@groupe-casino.fr – 01 53 65 24 39
Image 7 : Priscille Reneaume – preneaume@image7.fr – 01 53 70 74 70

Press Contacts MasterCard:
Donatienne Douriez, MasterCard – donatienne_douriez@mastercard.com – 01 42 73 81 23
Myriam Gasnier, Weber Shandwick – mgasnier@webershandwick.com – 01 47 59 56 36

28 September 2011

CasinoExpress.fr: drive-through shopping the Casino way

The Casino Group is expanding its portfolio of formats with the launch of a new drive-through experience called “CasinoExpress.fr”. The first pick-up point is located near Lyon, on the road to Vienne (Vénissieux).

Casino has designed this new local service to be as accessible to as many people as possible and to meet the needs of customers and consumers who want to be freed from the bother of shopping while avoiding delivery charges and the need to wait in at home for the delivery to arrive.

Casino is thus enhancing its offer with a new service: CasinoExpress.fr, a 100% drive-through experience.

The CasinoExpress.fr service consists, on the one hand, of a dedicated website (www.casinoexpress.fr) where orders can be placed online and, on the other, of drive-through collection points where customers can come and pick up their shopping two hours after ordering it. A CasinoExpress.fr team will then take no more than 5 minutes to load the shopping straight into the boot of the car.

Being 100% free and with no minimum order requirement, this new channel offers low prices (in line with hypermarket competitors) coupled with a shopping experience that enables customers to focus on their everyday shopping needs.

The new distribution channel builds on the know-how the Casino Group has built up in two areas:

  • local shopping, which it has been championing for over a century through brands such as Petit Casino, Vival, Spar, Monoprix, Franprix – a sector in which it is currently the leader in France;
  • e-commerce, with Cdiscount – the Number 1 non-food e-commerce retailer in France.

CasinoExpress.fr also benefits from the expertise the Group has acquired in online food retailing through “Mes Courses Casino”, which is already available in more than 80 of its hypermarkets and supermarkets where a pick-up facility is available at the store (pick-up by car or at the in-store reception).

7,000 items, national brands and Casino own-label

CasinoExpress.fr offers a catalogue of 7,000 everyday products covering all departments: market produce (fruit, vegetables, meat, fish), fresh produce, frozen foods, grocery, health, household items, variety store… with maximum focus on quality and freshness. For example, CasinoExpress.fr guarantees a minimum pre-expiry date (30 days for grocery, 7 days for yoghurt and dairy, 6 days for cold meats, ready meals, cheese, butter, smoked and salted fish, 3 days for deli products, 2 days for meat, poultry and fresh fish). In addition, special emphasis is placed on organic products and those from sustainable agriculture. Cold chain integrity is, of course, strictly maintained throughout the process.

CasinoExpress.fr includes major national brand products as well as Casino own-label products (Casino Délices, Casino Bio, Casino Famili, Casino Saveurs d’ailleurs, Casino Terres et Saveurs, Club des Sommeliers, Casino bien pour vous, etc.). CasinoExpress.fr also makes mothers’ lives easier with a wide range of baby products (organic food, wide selection of infant milk, infant care accessories, health, etc.).

Furthermore, a low price policy will apply throughout the year, backed up by regular promotion campaigns.

A flexible, quality service

Thanks to real-time stock management, CasinoExpress.fr is aiming for near-100% product availability. Customers can either pre-pay for their orders online or pay by bank card at the drive-through. All purchases are made using a secure payment procedure (PCSI-DSS certified).
CasinoExpress.fr offers a highly flexible service: customers can place an order around the clock and come to collect their shopping from a drive-through, open Monday to Saturday from 8.30 a.m. to 8.30 p.m. Depending on their needs, customers can collect their shopping from two hours to up to 7 days following their order.

The CasinoExpress.fr drive-through in Vénissieux occupies 1600 square metres of warehouse space and will employ 30 staff, recruited locally in partnership with the Job Centre.

Press contact: Frédéric CROCCEL – Tel. 01 53 65 24 39 – fcroccel@groupe-casino.fr

27 September 2011

Exito announces successful COP 2,500 billion (USD 1.4 billion) capital increase

Almacenes Éxito S.A. (“Éxito”), a Groupe Casino subsidiary, announced today the share allocation of its COP 2,500 billion (USD 1.4 billion) capital increase at a price of COP 21,900 per share. The offer was oversubscribed 2.6x* (excluding Casino’s pro-rata subscription) reflecting strong local and international demand for the shares in a challenging market environment.

Éxito will use proceeds from this capital increase to accelerate its expansion plan and consolidate its leadership position in Colombia. In addition, the proceeds will also be used to fund the acquisition of Casino’s majority stakes in leading Uruguayan retailers Disco and Devoto, with Éxito becoming the group’s integrated platform for growth in Hispanic Latin America.

Casino has subscribed its pro-rata participation in the capital increase, maintaining its stake in Éxito at 54.8%.

*and 1.7x including Casino’s announced subscription
Paris, September 27th 2011

Analysts and Investors Contact
Régine Gaggioli : rgaggioli@groupe-casino.fr / + 33 (0)1 53 65 64 17
Aline Nguyen : anguyen@groupe-casino.fr / + 33 (0) 1 53 65 64 85

 

 

DISCLAIMER

The Exito common shares in this offering have not been registered under the securities laws of any other jurisdiction outside of Colombia. The offering will take place in the United States in accordance with Rule 144A of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and to certain non-U.S. persons in offshore transactions in reliance of Regulation S of the Securities Act. The Exito common shares offered will not be registered under the Securities Act and cannot be offered or sold in the United States without registration or an applicable exemption to the registration requirements. The offering does not constitute a public offering of financial securities in France within the meaning of Article L. 411-1 of the French Code Monétaire et Financier and Title I of Book II of the Règlement Général of the Autorité des marchés financiers (the ‘‘AMF’’) and, therefore, no offering material has been or and will be filed with the AMF for prior approval. Consequently, the Exito common shares may not be, directly or indirectly, offered or sold to the public in France. The common shares being offered are registered in Colombia’s National Securities and Issuers’ Registry (Registro Nacional de Valores y Emisores – RNVE) and in the Colombian Stock Exchange (Bolsa de Valores de Colombia- BVC). Almacenes Éxito S.A. is a supervised entity by the Colombian Financial Superintendency.

 

 

27 September 2011

Casino: success of a €600 million bond issue

Casino announces the successful issue of a €600 million 4.5-year bond.
This operation strengthens the liquidity of the Group and extends the maturity of its debt, with the purpose of refinancing the end-2011 and early-2012 debt instalments.

This new bond, which will pay a coupon of 4.47%, has been largely oversubscribed by a diversified investor base.

Casino is rated BBB- stable by Standard & Poor’s and Fitch Ratings.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Crédit Agricole Corporate & Investment Banking, Deutsche Bank, HSBC, ING, Natixis and Société Générale were lead managers of this bond issue.

Saint-Etienne, 27 September 2011

Analysts and Investors Contact
Régine Gaggioli: rgaggioli@groupe-casino.fr / + 33 (0)1 53 65 64 17
Aline Nguyen: anguyen@groupe-casino.fr / + 33 (0) 1 53 65 64 85

14 September 2011

Nathalie ESTRADA is appointed Human Resources Director of Cdiscount

Nathalie ESTRADA is appointed Human Resources Director of Cdiscount. She will report to Emmanuel GRENIER, CEO of Cdiscount.

Nathalie ESTRADA is a graduate of the Institut Commercial de Nancy and was previously VP Human Resources for American Express France, a position she occupied after being Director of Human Resources France for Accenture.

Saint-Etienne, September 14, 2011

Press Contacts:

Image Sept
Grégoire Lucas and Priscille Reneaume / Tel. 01 53 70 74 70 /glucas@image7.frpreneaume@image7.fr

Groupe Casino
Frédéric Croccel / Tel. 01 53 65 24 39 /fcroccel@groupe-casino.fr

8 September 2011

Thierry ORSONI is appointed Communication Director of the Casino Group

Thierry Orsoni was born in 1961 and is a graduate of IEP Paris. He is appointed Communication Director of the Casino Group, reporting directly to Jean-Charles Naouri, Chairman and CEO of the Casino Group.

Thierry Orsoni has been Communication Director for Club Méditerranée since 2000 and will take up his position with the Casino Group on November 2, 2011.

Prior to this he worked for SANOFI, where he was successively Publishing Manager, Press Department Manager and Communication Director, France.

During his career, he has also held positions in the communication departments of various organisations and companies, for example the Fédération Nationale du Crédit Agricole and Banque Populaire du Nord.

Saint-Etienne, September 8, 2011

Press Contacts:

Image Sept
Grégoire Lucas and Priscille Reneaume
Tel. 01 53 70 74 70
glucas@image7.frpreneaume@image7.fr

Groupe Casino
Frédéric Croccel
Tel. 01 53 65 24 39
fcroccel@groupe-casino.fr

5 September 2011

Exito Launches COP 2.5 Trillion ($1.4 Billion) Offering of Common Shares

Exito announced today the launching of its offering of common shares, as stated on June 29th, following the formal approval received from Colombian regulatory authorities on 2 September.
The company intends to raise approximately COP 2.5 trillion ($1.4 billion), based on a price per share of COP 21,900, representing an 8% discount to Exito’s share price(1).
Proceeds from the issue will be used to finance the Exito’s expansion plan in Colombia and in the region, including the acquisition of Casino’s majority stakes in Disco and Devoto in Uruguay for a total value of US$746 million.
Exito’s current shareholders have a priority subscription right to the new shares, pro rata to their interest in the company. Common shares not acquired by current shareholders will be allocated to international investors and to the general public in Colombia. Casino, which owns 54.8% of Exito, intends to subscribe to the capital increase pro rata to its current ownership, thereby maintaining its controlling interest in the company.
The subscription period will run from 5 September to 23 September 2011.

(1) Based on the average price over the month preceding the Exito Board of Directors’ decision setting the subscription price and adjusted for the portion of the 2010 dividend that will be paid in advance to current shareholders before the completion of the new share issue.

Analysts and Investors Contact

Régine Gaggioli: rgaggioli@groupe-casino.fr / + 33 (0)1 53 65 64 17
Aline Nguyen: anguyen@groupe-casino.fr / + 33 (0) 1 53 65 64 85
DISCLAIMER
The Exito common shares in this offering have not been registered under the securities laws of any other jurisdiction outside of Colombia. The offering will take place in the United States in accordance with Rule 144A of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and to certain non-U.S. persons in offshore transactions in reliance of Regulation S of the Securities Act. The Exito common shares offered will not be registered under the Securities Act and cannot be offered or sold in the United States without registration or an applicable exemption to the registration requirements. The offering does not constitute a public offering of financial securities in France within the meaning of Article L. 411-1 of the French Code Monétaire et Financier and Title I of Book II of the Règlement Général of the Autorité des marchés financiers (the ‘‘AMF’’) and, therefore, no offering material has been or and will be filed with the AMF for prior approval. Consequently, the Exito common shares may not be, directly or indirectly, offered or sold to the public in France. The common shares being offered are registered in Colombia’s National Securities and Issuers’ Registry (Registro Nacional de Valores y Emisores – RNVE) and in the Colombian Stock Exchange (Bolsa de Valores de Colombia- BVC). Almacenes Éxito S.A. is a supervised entity by the Colombian Financial Superintendency.

31 August 2011

Success of a USD 900M medium-term financing

Casino has announced today the closing of a medium-term financing for an amount of USD 900M (approx. EUR630M) with a group of 9 international banks : JP Morgan (facility agent), Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Barclays, Citi, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, HSBC and RBS.
This operation, which enables the Group to strengthen its liquidity and access to competitive financial resources, shows the quality of Casino’s signature.

Paris, 31 August 2011

Analysts and Investors contact  :

Régine Gaggioli : rgaggioli@groupe-casino.fr / + 33 (0)1 53 65 64 17

Aline Nguyen : anguyen@groupe-casino.fr / + 33 (0)1 53 65 64 85

Press contact

Group Communication Department
directiondelacommunication@groupe-casino.fr
(+33) 1 53 65 24 29