{"id":5403,"date":"2020-02-19T07:03:31","date_gmt":"2020-02-19T06:03:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stories.valora.com\/?p=5403"},"modified":"2020-02-19T10:38:04","modified_gmt":"2020-02-19T09:38:04","slug":"we-are-pursuing-a-growth-strategy-with-food-as-the-main-driver","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/en\/we-are-pursuing-a-growth-strategy-with-food-as-the-main-driver\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cWe are pursuing a growth strategy with food as the main driver.\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Michael Mueller, CEO of Valora, looks back on 2019. Winning the SBB tender was one of the milestones. In the interview he explains what it means for the future direction of the company and how Valora has developed overall. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator is-style-wide\"\/>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Gesch\u00e4ftsbericht 2019 | Valora Gruppe\" width=\"1778\" height=\"1000\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ibIDVgC5MUQ?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Michael Mueller, how was the 2019 financial\nyear for Valora?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Valora exceeded expectations with operating profit of CHF 91.5 million and an EBIT margin of 4.5%. External sales remained stable. However, we did post +2.2% growth in the foodvenience categories \u2013 excluding press, books and tobacco \u2013 mainly due to food sales. That is a very pleasing result that reflects our strategy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>You attracted a lot of interest with the launch\nof the cashier-free avec box in spring 2019. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We presented the most\nmodern convenience store in Switzerland. It was our first step towards sales\noutlets enabling autonomous shopping as a complement to our current formats at\nselected locations. Following the initial pilot in Zurich main station, we have\nbeen accumulating further experience since September with the avec box at ETH\nZurich. These tests show how we can use digitalisation to be innovative and improve\nthe retail experience for customers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>What feedback have you had so far? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We have received very\npositive and valuable input. Customers particularly like the product selection\nand the simple and fast purchasing process outside normal opening hours. We\nhave used the customer feedback to further optimise the app and background\nsystems. The development is still not complete. In parallel, we are working\ntowards auto-checkout concepts to make shopping still more convenient. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>What were some other highlights in 2019?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The main story was the\nSBB tender. There were 262 kiosk and convenience sites on offer, not only did\nwe secure the 231 stores we already run but we gained an extra 31 as well. In\ndoing so, we saw off strong national and international competition and\nleveraged our strengths: unique experience in small-scale retail at highly\nfrequented locations and food competence combined with our innovativeness and\nfeel for market trends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote has-text-align-center is-style-large is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p><em>\u201dAt the 262 SBB sites secured until 2030, we will convert a lot of the kiosks into convenience stores with a higher food component and we will also have more food at k kiosk.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>What was the significance of this tender for\nValora?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We have now secured\nthese important sites until 2030. That means we remain Switzerland\u2019s leading\nkiosk operator. At the same time, we can really expand the convenience part of\nour business and increase awareness of our avec brand. The number of avec\nstores at SBB locations will increase when we convert the k kiosk sales outlets\nand, adding the new sites, grow from currently 32 to about 140 by 2021. In\naddition, the remaining k kiosk sales outlets at SBB locations will be\ncompletely overhauled. We plan to invest about CHF 70 million in modernisation\nand conversion work over the next two years and the plan is to have finished\nwork on all locations by 2021.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery columns-3 is-cropped content-image-slider wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><ul class=\"blocks-gallery-grid\"><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1600\" height=\"1067\" src=\"http:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Bild_Slider_4-1600x1067.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"5191\" data-full-url=\"http:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Bild_Slider_4.jpg\" data-link=\"http:\/\/stories.valora.com\/fr\/?attachment_id=5191\" class=\"wp-image-5191\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Bild_Slider_4-1600x1067.jpg 1600w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Bild_Slider_4-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Bild_Slider_4-900x600.jpg 900w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Bild_Slider_4-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Bild_Slider_4-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Bild_Slider_4-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Bild_Slider_4-1800x1200.jpg 1800w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Bild_Slider_4-400x267.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 706px) 89vw, (max-width: 767px) 82vw, 740px\" \/><figcaption class=\"blocks-gallery-item__caption\">avec box<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1600\" height=\"1068\" src=\"http:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Bild_Slider_2-1600x1068.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"5185\" data-full-url=\"http:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Bild_Slider_2.jpg\" data-link=\"http:\/\/stories.valora.com\/fr\/?attachment_id=5185\" class=\"wp-image-5185\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Bild_Slider_2-1600x1068.jpg 1600w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Bild_Slider_2-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Bild_Slider_2-900x600.jpg 900w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Bild_Slider_2-768x513.jpg 768w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Bild_Slider_2-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Bild_Slider_2-2048x1367.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Bild_Slider_2-1800x1200.jpg 1800w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Bild_Slider_2-400x267.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 706px) 89vw, (max-width: 767px) 82vw, 740px\" \/><figcaption class=\"blocks-gallery-item__caption\">avec X<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1600\" height=\"1067\" src=\"http:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Valora-KKiosk-Oerlikon01-1600x1067.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"5428\" data-full-url=\"http:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Valora-KKiosk-Oerlikon01-scaled.jpg\" data-link=\"http:\/\/stories.valora.com\/fr\/?attachment_id=5428\" class=\"wp-image-5428\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Valora-KKiosk-Oerlikon01-1600x1067.jpg 1600w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Valora-KKiosk-Oerlikon01-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Valora-KKiosk-Oerlikon01-900x600.jpg 900w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Valora-KKiosk-Oerlikon01-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Valora-KKiosk-Oerlikon01-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Valora-KKiosk-Oerlikon01-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Valora-KKiosk-Oerlikon01-1800x1200.jpg 1800w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Valora-KKiosk-Oerlikon01-400x267.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 706px) 89vw, (max-width: 767px) 82vw, 740px\" \/><figcaption class=\"blocks-gallery-item__caption\">k kiosk<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Rents for Valora will increase significantly.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Future rents for the convenience stores are in line with more recent comparable leases; the rents for the kiosk sites will substantially increase. However, we will convert a lot of the kiosks into convenience stores with a higher food component. We will also have more food at k kiosk. The adjusted range will have a positive effect on the gross profit margin. Besides, customer frequency at SBB stations has grown by +1.5% on average over the past four years and is set to rise further still. That provides valuable impetus for sales growth. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>What makes you so confident? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Macrotrends such as\nsociety\u2019s growing preference for smaller households, increased mobility and the\nassociated on-the-move consumption all support our business model. Given our\ndense sales outlet network at highly frequented locations, we are at the\nheartbeat of society, i.e. where the customers want us to be. We can meet the\ngrowing demand for fast, fresh meals and snacks through our foodvenience\noffering. Our new 2025 strategy is based on that. We finalised and communicated\nthe strategy following the successful SBB tender. Having focused on our core\nbusiness, we are now in a new, growth-oriented phase centred on food as the key\nto success. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote has-text-align-center is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p><em>\u201dGiven our dense outlet network at highly frequented locations, we are at the heartbeat of society, i.e. where the customers want us to be.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Is the significance of food already apparent in\nthe figures?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Food grew by approximately +3% per year between 2013 and 2019 and the higher-margin food business has since become Valora\u2019s main gross profit driver. It accounted for a total of 37% of external sales in 2019 and 53% of gross profit. We want to continue that development. We have renewed all formats in recent years, optimised the range through a higher food component and strengthened our expertise in food production. The expansion of pretzel production for trading partners (B2B) is also significant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-style-default\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1600\" height=\"1067\" src=\"http:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Valora-vertikale-integration03-1600x1067.jpg\" alt=\"Valora Laugenprodukte\" class=\"wp-image-5421\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Valora-vertikale-integration03-1600x1067.jpg 1600w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Valora-vertikale-integration03-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Valora-vertikale-integration03-900x600.jpg 900w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Valora-vertikale-integration03-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Valora-vertikale-integration03-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Valora-vertikale-integration03-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Valora-vertikale-integration03-1800x1200.jpg 1800w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Valora-vertikale-integration03-400x267.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 706px) 89vw, (max-width: 767px) 82vw, 740px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Valora invests a lot in pretzel production.\nWhat is your position regarding that?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We are investing about EUR 50 million in capacity expansion in Germany and the US, the world\u2019s biggest pretzel markets. We have had a new production line in operation in Oranienbaum since October 2019. It is already highly productive and well utilised. We also increased the efficiency at our current facilities. The new line in the US has been operational since the end of 2019, in spring 2020 we will have another production line in operation in Oranienbaum. The 20% capacity increase in Germany is necessary to meet the high market demand. When the work is done, Ditsch will operate 15 modern pretzel production lines with over 800 workers. We therefore expect a big increase in B2B sales volumes for 2020.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>What is behind this high demand? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It stems directly from the growth in out-of-home consumption. Pretzels are a convenient baked snack to enjoy when on the move. We are also tapping into new sales channels as pretzels become better known, including in the US. Pretzel production is also often outsourced as a niche in the baked goods market. Ditsch pretzels are popular, we see that for example with the 100-year anniversary we celebrated in 2019. Pretzel production in Germany increased on average by +3% per year between 2012 and 2018, while Ditsch increased its volume on average by +10% per year between 2012 and 2019. In our annual survey, the B2B customers again referred to the high product quality, innovativeness and advisory competence. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote has-text-align-center is-style-large is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p><em>\u201dWith the capacity expansion of our pretzel production we expect a big increase in B2B sales volumes for 2020.\u201d <\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>And how do the Valora formats benefit from the\nexpansion in production? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In 2019, over 10% of the 700 million pretzels we produced went to Valora formats. In future, we want to sell even more of our own products through our own formats and incorporate our innovation. That corresponds to our objective of more vertical integration in the value chain. The same principle applies to the ok.\u2013 own brand. We also want to include more of our fresh product know-how from BackWerk in other formats. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>You merged the Ditsch B2C format with BackWerk\norganisationally in 2019. What was the outcome?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We separated the B2C\nDitsch format organisationally from the production and B2B business and\nintegrated it with BackWerk into the new Food Service Germany business unit\nmanaged out of Essen. Having completed the merger successfully, we clustered\nthe expertise and created a platform to facilitate further growth. We also make\nbetter use of the resulting B2C synergies. We have already initiated a combined\nlogistics platform to reduce costs and optimise purchasing conditions. An\nefficient logistics chain not only adds efficiency, it also helps us grow. We\nhave increased supply chain capacity for our Food Service Switzerland business\nunit and integrated all the formats into one logistics operation to improve\nmargins. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-style-default\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1600\" height=\"1067\" src=\"http:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira2286Capture-1600x1067.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-5437\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira2286Capture-1600x1067.jpg 1600w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira2286Capture-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira2286Capture-900x600.jpg 900w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira2286Capture-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira2286Capture-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira2286Capture-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira2286Capture-1800x1200.jpg 1800w, https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira2286Capture-400x267.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 706px) 89vw, (max-width: 767px) 82vw, 740px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>How did your Food Service business develop\noverall in 2019? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Food Service division had a successful year. The B2B \/ Production&nbsp; unit posted record sales with +15.5% growth and gained important market share. The B2C units, especially Food Service Switzerland, posted respectable same-store growth. Food Service Germany also benefited from the initial synergies following the merger and further optimised its sales network at the same time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>How about the Retail division?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Accounting effects\n(IFRS 16) and project costs from the SBB tender impacted the profitability of\nRetail Switzerland. Otherwise, following an outstanding 2018, we had lower\nsame-store sales, especially in press and tobacco, combined with higher costs\nrelated to the new convenience and kiosk concepts. Retail Germany incl.\nLuxembourg and Austria, on the other hand, enjoyed solid same-store growth.\nEven if press products in Germany remain under pressure, the decline was less\npronounced in 2019. The cost-saving programme also bore fruit and the unit made\ngood progress in converting its own stores into franchise operations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>So it was a good year in spite of Retail\nSwitzerland? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It is remarkable that\nwe were able to offset the challenges faced by Retail Switzerland with the\npositive development of Retail Germany and Food Service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Besides press products, tobacco is under\npressure as well. Why is that? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>People smoke considerably fewer cigarettes these days. We do nevertheless expect tobacco to make a stable contribution to profit over the next few years. Tobacco continues to provide high frequency and sales in our stores. Our dense network of retail formats at highly frequented locations is also a popular promotion platform. Take, for example, the sale of the increasingly sought after alternatives, such as heat not burn or e-smoke products. We saw unprecedented demand for these products in 2019, but they still remain a niche within the tobacco category where they account for around 5% of sales. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Did you also increase efficiency in Retail in\n2019? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We did make the Retail\ndivision more agile by realigning the management structure. The cross-market\nroles were merged, which clustered important skills in category and in supply\nchain management,&nbsp; purchasing and\nmarketing. The expansion of the agency model in Switzerland and the franchise\noperations in Germany will also bring more efficiency. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Were there any other organisational changes in\n2019?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We strengthened the\nextended Group Executive Management with the addition of Monika Zander, who is\nin charge of the Food Service Switzerland business unit. The Valora CFO left\nthe company for personal reasons at the end of November. We strengthened the\nBoard of Directors by adding two people: the food-retail and franchising expert\nInsa Klasing and the retail and supply chain expert Sascha Zahnd, part of the\nTesla leadership team. mobilezone CEO Markus Bernhard, eBay top manager Karin\nSchwab and Suzanne Thoma, CEO of BKW AG, will also stand for election at the\n2020 Annual General Meeting. The long-serving directors Peter Ditsch, Markus\nFiechter and Cornelia Ritz Bossicard will step down at the General Meeting on\ncompletion of the last strategy period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>You have been directly responsible for the\ndigital area since 2019. How is that going? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We founded the Digital\nProduct Development unit in the early summer. We are building our technological\ncompetence through the new unit and developing new solutions for customers,\noperations and organisation. Although work has already started before, the\nautonomous store models have taken centre stage. The team has also upgraded the\nk kiosk loyalty app into which other brands can be included in future. Our\nplanning over the next three years includes investment and operating\nexpenditure totalling in the region of CHF 20 to 25 million for digital\nprojects. That shows how important they are to Valora. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>And what about bob Finance?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>bob Finance is\nprogressing well. We need new digital product ideas to achieve more success,\nsomething like the online shop www.zer000.ch for iPhones ad Apple accessories\nlaunched at the end of 2019, which enabled Valora to expand its exclusive partnership\nwith Apple as an Authorised Reseller.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote has-text-align-center is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p><em>\u201dWe want to provide our employees with a platform for continual learning and further development.\u201d <\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Have you also worked on the performance\nculture? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We drive entrepreneurship in the sales outlets. Today, 76% of our stores are operated by agency or franchise partners. We have maintained an ongoing,&nbsp; digitally supported feedback process in-house through Valora Dialog. We have also created a competency model to clearly show what is required of whom. We will incorporate that into our recruitment and development process in 2020. We want to provide our employees with a platform for continual learning and further development \u2013 that is more important than ever given the pace of change these days. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Valora - kleines Gl\u00fcck unterwegs\" width=\"1778\" height=\"1000\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/eic-KEDOf54?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>You announced that Valora would be made more\nsustainable. What is your position in that regard? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In 2019, we put a\nsustainability team together, gauged the expectations of our stakeholders,\nestablished the key themes for us and our environment and defined the measures\nwe will focus on going forward. The priorities of People, Planet, Products fit\nwith our corporate strategy and offer differentiation opportunities at the same\ntime.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>How is Valora expanding its network? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Besides securing the\nSBB sites until 2030, we extended our contract with Tamoil by ten years,\nthereby securing over 50 avec stores in gas stations. Generally speaking, the\nconvenience and service station business is of interest to us and offers scope\nfor expansion. We want to expand our network in a sustainably profitable way,\nparticularly also for Food Service Germany. For example, we are conducting a\npilot with Eurogarage, in which we are testing store-in-store models with\nBackWerk and Ditsch at four service station. Our expansion with BackWerk into\nthe Netherlands and Austria is also proceeding well and we acquired the food\nservice format SuperGuud with three sales outlets in Switzerland. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>What are the main growth levers currently? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We are following a\ngrowth strategy with food as the main driver. The key growth levers are\ncurrently the conversion of the SBB sales outlets, the expansion of the B2B\npretzel business and higher food sales in general. However, we also want to\nmaintain tobacco\u2019s profit contribution. The Services category has growth potential,\nalbeit at a much lower level. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>And how much will you invest? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We are in a bigger,\ngrowth-oriented investment cycle right now. In 2019, we spent CHF 95 million\nand we expect to invest in the region of CHF 110 million in 2020, mainly on converting\nthe SBB sales outlets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Are there any acquisitions in the pipeline?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We want to keep the leverage ratio under 2.5x EBITDA to retain our strategic flexibility. We are in a solid financial position for further growth. Minor, complementary acquisitions are a possibility with our current credit lines. We are prepared at all levels for straightforward and rapid integrations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>What are your financial targets for the coming\nyears?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For the 2020 financial year, we expect flat development with EBIT of CHF 85 to 91 million. In the medium term \u2013 that means including the completion of the SBB conversion work scheduled for 2022 \u2013 we anticipate a higher&nbsp; EBIT margin of approximately 5%. That matches our financial goals up to 2025. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote has-text-align-center is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p><em>\u201dValora wants to remain a reliable dividend payer in the future.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>What can investors expect of Valora?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Valora wants to remain\na reliable dividend payer in the future. The proposed dividend for 2019 remains\nunchanged at CHF 12.50, gross and our plan is to sustain the dividend level for\nthe next few years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-color has-text-align-center has-small-font-size has-cyan-bluish-gray-color\"> <em>Photos \/ Videos: No\u00eb Flum&nbsp;<\/em> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Michael Mueller, CEO of Valora, looks back on 2019. Winning the SBB tender was one of the milestones. In the interview he explains how Valora has developed overall. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5404,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[430,563,5071],"class_list":["post-5403","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-strategy-keyfigures","tag-group","tag-interview","tag-the-annual-report-selection-2019"],"pbg_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira0209Capture-scaled.jpg",1707,2560,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira0209Capture-420x280.jpg",420,280,true],"medium":["https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira0209Capture-800x1200.jpg",800,1200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira0209Capture-768x1152.jpg",768,1152,true],"large":["https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira0209Capture-1067x1600.jpg",1067,1600,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira0209Capture-1024x1536.jpg",1024,1536,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira0209Capture-1365x2048.jpg",1365,2048,true],"valorastories-image":["https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira0209Capture-800x800.jpg",800,800,true],"valorastories-image-slider":["https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira0209Capture-1200x800.jpg",1200,800,true],"valorastories-image-zoomed":["https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira0209Capture-1800x1200.jpg",1800,1200,true],"valorastories-image-big":["https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira0209Capture-2560x1440.jpg",2560,1440,true],"twentyseventeen-featured-image":["https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira0209Capture-2000x1200.jpg",2000,1200,true],"twentyseventeen-thumbnail-avatar":["https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira0209Capture-100x100.jpg",100,100,true],"rp4wp-thumbnail-post":["https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/valora_profil_madeira0209Capture-400x267.jpg",400,267,true]},"pbg_author_info":{"display_name":"Valora Stories","author_link":"https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/en\/author\/stories-valora\/","author_img":"<img alt='Valora Stories' src='https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4c7dcea5f2af7c4afaf9da5eb51a7c9d?s=128&#038;d=mm&#038;r=g' srcset='https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4c7dcea5f2af7c4afaf9da5eb51a7c9d?s=256&#038;d=mm&#038;r=g 2x' class='avatar avatar-128 photo' height='128' width='128' loading='lazy' decoding='async'\/>"},"pbg_comment_info":" No Comments","pbg_excerpt":"Michael Mueller, CEO of Valora, looks back on 2019. Winning the SBB tender was one of the milestones. In the interview he explains how Valora has developed overall.","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5403","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5403"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5403\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8852,"href":"https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5403\/revisions\/8852"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5404"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5403"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5403"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stories.valora.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5403"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}