The Good End and the Wednesdays in the Plaza meant an incentive for La Comer. Thanks to these promotional campaigns, the retailer was able to have the closure it needed to not present decreases in 2021.
La Comer reported in its financial report sent to the Mexican Stock Exchange (BMV) that its profits in the fourth quarter of 2021 grew 54.2% compared to the same period of the previous year. This is equivalent to 430 million pesos (mdp). In addition, the company’s operating flow for that period was 661 million pesos, which translates into a growth of 4.0%.
Revenues for the last quarter of 2021 amounted to 7,756 million pesos, which represents an increase of 12.6% compared to the same period in 2020. Meanwhile, same-store sales, which have been operating for at least 12 months, grew by 7.6%, in comparison with the same quarter of the previous year.
In accumulated terms, La Comer’s revenues amounted to 28,906 million pesos, that is, an increase of 7.0% year-on-year, while same-store sales grew by 4.3%.
The Ebitda was 2,660 million pesos, which represents a growth of 5.2% more than the previous year where the retailer reached 2,529 million pesos, while the accumulated profits were 1,543 million pesos versus the 1,467 million pesos obtained the previous year.
By product category, the Mexican supermarket chain assures that perishables, and the recovery in the prepared food and bakery areas gave the boost to sales.
At the moment, the company operates 77 stores that are distributed in 33 La Comer, 13 Sumesa, 13 City Market and 18 Fresko stores, with a sales area of 329,033 square meters.
Although all formats showed increases in sales, La Comer was the one that presented the best results in same-store sales. By region, the Northwest had the best performance in same-store sales, due to the recovery in tourist areas.
On the other hand, the digital platform La Comer en tu casa continues to be an axis for the company, however, its performance was slightly more moderate than it had during the previous quarter. In the report, the company does not detail the results of this electronic commerce bet.
investment projects
In the fourth quarter of the year, the retailer opened its first “side store” in Mexico City. This new store has new spaces designed to serve online orders, but at the same time takes advantage of synergies with an existing store.
In November, the chain also opened the Fresko San Lucas store in the state of Baja California Sur, which generates 280 direct and indirect jobs. And in December, the second Fresko store opened in the state of Nuevo León, employing 260 people.
For the end of the year, the retailer had relevant increases in its expenses. As part of its strategy, it continues to replace compostable packaging that is more friendly to the environment, as well as packaging for shipments in purchases made through the La Comer en tu casa platform.
Eat the same ‘withdrew its portfolio’ to invest in advertising, in the opening of new stores and in electricity.
Pay taxes to the SAT
La Comer reported in the report a payment of 426 million pesos (mdp) to the Tax Administration Service (SAT) in 2021, after the tax authority reviewed the opinions of the 2014 and 2015 financial years of the retail company.
The Mexican retailer is not the first to catch up with the SAT. In August 2021, Walmart paid 8,000 million pesos of taxes to the Mexican treasury.
Months earlier, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said he had instructed the SAT to voluntarily summon companies to pay or pay their debts. “Otherwise, legal proceedings will be taken because I have said it from the beginning: we are not a cover for anyone, nor is there tax remission,” the president warned in April 2021.
