FRANCE: Leclerc to open hybrid Drive | Progresiv
Leclerc is to open a hybrid standalone Drive site combining food and non-food items, at Cap Malo near Rennes, in 2016. As well as the food ranges offered at a traditional Leclerc Drive, customers will also be able to collect items such as books, music and sports goods, and bulky products like garden furniture. As well as ordering online, customers will also be able to order via terminals installed in leisure facilities around the Cap Malo area. Leclerc also proposes to site a petrol station and car wash next to the Drive. 
According to a report this week in LSA, gross turnover of the 557 Drives Leclerc operated at the end of 2014 came to 1.968 billion euros. Leclerc's top performing Drive site generated 16.5 million euros in gross turnover in 2014, while 16 exceeded 10 million euros and the 100th unit came in at 5.9 million euros. More than 400 of these sites are less than three years old, and so have plenty of potential for growth. Michel-Edouard Leclerc, in an interview earlier this year, said the retailer would create 40 Drive sites in 2015 and that it would be the main vehicle for e-commerce development. (www.igd.com)
