Hypermarket's adapting at the financial crisis conditions

Abstract

The financial crisis is a global phenomenon that has marked the evolution of all economic sectors. The drastic change of the consumer behavior has led the trade companies to choose between two survival strategies: the product development strategy and the exit strategy. Carrefour company bases its strategy on five values deeply rooted in the consumer`s conscience: an aggressive pricing policy, based on discount; a range of 50000 items sold under the concept “everything under one roof”, quality, modernity and innovation. The strategy rests on three pillars: customer orientation, transformation and innovation. The product policy is focused on exploiting the products which belong to Carrefour trademarks and the pricing strategy allows the customer to purchase a variety of quality products, at low prices. The promotions acquire an aggressive tint in the company`s marketing strategy, the success being guaranteed by their ability to allow consumers to maintain a regular and economical consumption. For this company, the knowledge of the customer`s psychology is an advantage which allows the implementation of some psychological trics for sales growth. The strategies implemented by Carrefour enable the company`s survival in a changing competitive environment and generate profit. This result proves that Carrefour deserves the market leading place.