Quick Take — Leclerc: a unique ‘discount’ offer on personal care products

Leclerc, the undisputed leader in the French retail sector, has managed to surprise not only its customers but us as well with a range of personal hygiene products priced at €2.50, given that, today, around one in two French people cannot afford to buy personal hygiene products.

Leclerc’s range – having become the leader in hypermarkets over the years, at the expense of Carrefour and Auchan – includes five products: soap, shampoo, toothpaste, a toothbrush and cotton buds.

The expression ‘douche froide’ is a very French play on words that highlights the poverty of a large part of the population and the shock of recent impoverishment for a significant proportion of them.

Quick Take — In just a few years, Lidl’s non-food segment in Europe has developed from a simple promotional area into a strategic pillar of the group

A trajectory that can be read well by following the steps in sequence 7 May 2026… Lidl reorganises the non-food department in all its approximately 3,250 shops in Germany. Action and Tedi have paved the way Lidl will not be caught off guard.

The classic undifferentiated promotional area disappears. In its place: six permanent theme areas, each associated with its own brand, arranged along a continuous corridor between the refrigerated shelves and the checkout area.

Coloured signage, signs visible from afar, seasonally flexible layout. “We combine the efficiency of a discount shop with the inspiration of a specialist retailer,” said Steffen Graf, head of non-food at Lidl Germany(read more here ).

It should be noted that Lidl is bucking the trend: the hypermarket sector in France is down 4.9 per cent since the beginning of the year.

Compiled 3 June, updated 4 June 2026

Esselunga- Rewe: the Penny Market joint venture

“… We decide to enter into an agreement with the te-desco giant Rewe to create a chain of discount stores to be called Penny Market, controlled with 50 per cent equal shares. A decision by the board of directors is required to start the venture. I vote in favour of our father’s proposal, while his historic lawyer Alfonso Pellegatta is against it…’ Le Ossa dei Caprotti, page 169