An anomaly is about to be repaired. On June 1, Lidl will officially launch its e-commerce site in France, fifteen years after the very first version in Germany, its native country. In the meantime, Belgium, the Netherlands and even the Czech Republic had also been entitled to their own platform. But not France, until now. In the ranks of the sixth French retailer, patience is the key word.
“The priority was not e-commerce. There were many essential pillars that had to be tackled before even thinking about it. We preferred to take it easy, while relying on the experiences of others country”, justifies Michel Biero, executive director of purchasing and marketing for Lidl France. This new online store will only offer non-food products for sale, of which 70% will be exclusive to the site at first, before this percentage gradually increases. Do-it-yourself, garden, kitchen, leisure… The company intends to meet all the needs of the home.
A model change from 2012
This digital shift is fully in line with the upmarket strategy operated by the French subsidiary of Lidl a little over ten years ago. In 2012, the hard-discount specialist is brooding. “We were not well, it must be said,” admits Michel Biero. After the financial crisis of 2008, traditional brands reacted to the offensive of Aldi and others, by offering lower prices. Lidl automatically paid the price, losing market share. To avoid the inexorable fall that awaited its tricolor subsidiary, the parent company dispatched Friedrich Fuchs, appointed in 2012, boss of Lidl France, to the scene to kick the anthill. “The move upmarket that we have put in place has marked a turning point,” says this native of Stuttgart. And it was Michel Biero, who joined the group in 2001 as store and warehouse manager, before rising through the ranks, who was tasked with carrying out this radical transformation at full speed.
“We had to adapt to the French market and consumers, otherwise we would disappear. Previously, all the decisions came from Lidl International. I’m exaggerating, but when we were told that we had to paint the walls in sky blue, we painted them sky blue. We didn’t ask ourselves too many questions”, recalls Michel Biero. The management then relies on three pillars to pivot its model: real estate, the employer brand and the move upmarket. A colossal renovation work is undertaken in its 1,600 stores. “They destroyed entire warehouses to completely transform them, making them more pleasant, bright, with a real customer journey,” recalls Frank Rosenthal, retail expert. Lidl France benefits from the support of the group, present today in around thirty countries. No less than 5 billion euros will be invested in the space of ten years to give a facelift to the store network.
Within the teams themselves, substantive work is carried out to improve the image of the company. “We have remodeled the management a lot and thought about working conditions. Distribution remains a complicated job. We have to make our vacancies attractive in order to attract as many talents as possible”, underlines Michel Biero. Finally, Lidl tackled the sinews of war: the move upmarket of its products. No more pork from abroad, the meat sold in stores is now approaching 100% French origin. “We said one thing: the customer in France, we can catch him very easily with the price and good advertising. But, for him to come back, to retain him, we have to offer him quality” , argues Michel Biero.
The advantage of fruits and vegetables
Fresh produce thus came to stock the stalls, with particular attention paid to fruit and vegetables, which are attracting more and more customers. “Lidl offers about 120 references on this post. You are not going to have five kinds of tomatoes, like in other supermarkets, but one or two. Above all, they will be good. Fruits and vegetables are very important for the frequency of visits “, Supports Frank Rosenthal.
At the same time, the brand has retained part of the DNA that has made its strength: an offer limited to 2,000 references. “Lidl generally has two products available: a classic, first price, which is often a little more expensive than that of Leclerc, and another, more qualitative. This simplification of the choice leads the consumer not to be in cognitive overload. Result: no hesitation”, describes Olivier Mevel, lecturer in management sciences at the University of Western Brittany.
The bet now appears more than successful. In 2012, Lidl’s market share shrunk to a trickle, flirting with the 4% mark. It now peaks at nearly 8%, with an almost constant increase each year. “Michel Biero was the central figure in this transformation. He sold a key idea to his German hierarchy: a product for a need. Clarity in his speeches, his communication and the way he operates things were decisive. “, assures Olivier Mevel.
The ogre in the making Lidl thus grabs ground on its competitors. “He is in the process of blowing up mass distribution. For the moment, Géant Casino is the big loser, while Auchan is practically knocked out and Carrefour no longer knows which foot to dance on. Michel-Edouard Leclerc is, him , in an untenable situation: it is attacked by Amazon, Lidl and Grand Frais”, analyzes the academic. And, inevitably, the Lidl method is emulated. The other German giant, Aldi, has also been trying to make its move since 2021 with a slogan hammered into its advertising spots: “Place for the new consumer”. But the brand does not have the colossal means of Lidl international, the fifth largest distributor in the world, whose revenues have passed the 100 billion dollar mark in 2021.
Improving the store network
The brand, now qualified as a “soft-discounter”, does not intend to stop there. In the years to come, Lidl plans to expand its network of stores spread across France – 1,580 currently. It remains to be seen where, while large retailers are struggling to find new sites to set up warehouses. “Lidl is in a situation of conquest: it will open new stores and develop in urban areas, which were not necessarily its core target at the start. It still has potential,” said Frank Rosenthal. Michel Biero also wishes to consolidate his very special relationship with French agriculture. “Lidl has signed three-party contracts which are opening the way for it to all animal and plant sectors. When you go to the Agricultural Show, you see that its order book is always full to the brim,” says Olivier Mével.
Like all major retail players, Lidl has suffered the brunt of inflation. But, unlike Leclerc or Carrefour, 90% of its assortment is under distributor brands, allowing it to negotiate prices at any time of the year, without being subject to the law of modernization of the economy. . One more asset in the bag of the sign. Especially since Lidl continues to offer the lowest prices.
Very skilful in marketing, the brand has also been able to develop products in its effigy in recent years, which have been talked about. The famous yellow, red and blue sneakers met with unexpected success, transforming the image of the brand. “I even saw some in Paris, in Châtelet, in a famous sneaker store, at 4,000 euros. Above all, don’t buy them, we’ll make them again!” promises Michel Biero. And, in the future, these products should be available online. It remains to be seen whether Lidl customers will be able to take ownership of this new tool, which should allow the group to seek out targets that it cannot reach via its stores, particularly in the Alps, in the Gers, or even in Corsica. , where it is not located. The company should in any case rely on its Lidl Plus loyalty program, deployed in 2021 and which, two years after its launch, has 8.5 million members in France. A gigantic breeding ground that Lidl cherishes like a jewel.