Ocado
Group plc
20 June 2024
Ocado Group
plc
Update on Sobeys
Partnership
Ocado Group plc ("Ocado" or the
"Company") notes that Empire Company Limited has today announced a
pause to the planned go-live of Sobeys' CFC4 in Vancouver, Canada,
which was originally planned for 2025. The go-live timeline for the
Vancouver CFC will be under regular review, and the site will be
able to commission and scale quickly when required.
Ocado's partners in North America,
Kroger and Sobeys, have both announced strong growth in digital
sales in their latest quarterly results. With Ocado Retail the
fastest growing grocer in the UK today, there is clear evidence
that online is returning overall to being the fastest growing
channel in grocery.
As the online channel accelerates
Ocado is supporting its partners to grow volumes and expand
profitably, drawing on the experience of more than 20 years
operating and growing an online grocery retailer in the UK, one of
the world's most competitive grocery markets. As part of this
programme, Ocado and Sobeys have decided for now to focus their
joint resources into driving order and sales volumes across the
current network. This currently comprises 3 live CFCs in
major Canadian markets, across Toronto, Montreal, and Calgary, and
manual fulfilment solutions in nearly 100 stores.
Alongside this pause to the planned
go-live in Vancouver, Ocado and Sobeys have agreed to end terms
related to mutual exclusivity.
The Group's financial guidance for
FY24 remains unchanged, together with our target to be cash flow
positive in the mid-term. Ocado Group expects the capital
expenditure related to the MHE deployment for Sobeys CFC4,
originally expected to be incurred across FY24 and FY25, to be
deferred. The commencement of capacity fees earned from the
initial modules expected from the Vancouver site are also
deferred.
Contacts
Tim Steiner, Chief Executive Officer
on +44 1707 228 000
Stephen Daintith, Chief Financial
Officer on +44 1707 228 000
Nick Coulter, Head of Investor
Relations on +44 1707 228 000
Jamie Kerr, Head of Communications on
+44 1707 228 000
Ocado Group Press Office (Headland) on
+44 (0) 20 3805 4822
Notes to Editors
About Ocado Group
Ocado Group is a UK based technology
company trading on the London Stock Exchange (Ticker OCDO). It
provides end-to-end online grocery fulfilment solutions to thirteen
of the world's largest grocery retailers and holds a 50% share of
Ocado Retail Ltd in the UK in a Joint Venture with Marks &
Spencer. Ocado has spent two decades innovating for grocery online
and logistics, investing in a wide technology estate that includes
robotics, AI & machine learning, simulation, forecasting, and
edge intelligence.
Person responsible for arranging the
release of this announcement:
Neill Abrams
Group General Counsel and Company Secretary
Ocado Group plc
Buildings One & Two, Trident
Place, Mosquito Way,
Hatfield, Hertfordshire AL10
9UL
email:
company.secretary@ocado.com
Ocado Group plc LEI:
213800LO8F61YB8MBC74