The Chinese economy has been on a downward trend, impacting various industries. In recent years, the offline retail industry has faced tremendous pressure, with some long-established traditional large-scale supermarkets suffering massive losses. Yonghui Supermarket is expected to incur a net loss of 1.4 billion yuan in 2024, compared to a loss of 1.329 billion yuan in 2023, marking the fourth consecutive year of losses for the company.
On the evening of January 14, Yonghui Supermarket released a notice stating that the net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company in 2024 is projected to be -14.0 billion yuan, with a net profit after deducting non-recurring gains and losses of -22.1 billion yuan.
It is worth noting that Yonghui Supermarket had a net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company of -13.3 billion yuan in the same period in 2023, with a net profit after deducting non-recurring gains and losses of -19.8 billion yuan. Clearly, the losses for Yonghui Supermarket in 2024 have further expanded.
Yonghui Supermarket explained that the operational situation in 2024 did not significantly improve compared to 2023, as the overall challenges in the retail industry continued to put pressure on the company’s customer flow and orders. More importantly, the company faced initial pains from the strategic and operational transformation that started in the second half of 2024.
Founded in 2001, Yonghui Supermarket is a privately-owned large enterprise group that emerged in the process of transitioning from traditional to modern distribution methods, with its headquarters in Fuzhou, Fujian Province. It is one of the first companies in China to introduce fresh agricultural products into modern supermarkets.
Against the backdrop of the declining economy, several chain supermarkets have reported substantial losses.
One of the “Three Giants of Guangdong Supermarkets,” Renrenle Chain Supermarket, has incurred massive losses for three consecutive years from 2021 to 2023. The company’s 2023 annual report showed a revenue of 2.853 billion yuan, a 28.15% year-on-year decline, with a total loss of 2.146 billion yuan over the past three and a half years.
In the first half of 2024, Renrenle had a net profit of -284 million yuan, and in the first three quarters of 2024, the net profit was -485 million yuan, a 1.51% decrease year-on-year.
The financial situation disclosed by Lianhua Supermarket showed a net profit of approximately -271 million yuan in the first three quarters of 2024.
The 2024 third-quarter report released by Guoguang Chain showed a net profit of -10.9217 million yuan, a 62.71% decrease year-on-year.
According to incomplete statistics from the United Shopping Network Retail Research Center, the total revenue of 10 listed supermarket companies in the first three quarters of 2024 was approximately 116 billion yuan, with an average revenue of about 11.6 billion yuan. Only two companies achieved growth in both operating income and net profit, accounting for 20%, while four companies experienced declines in both revenue and profit, accounting for 40%.