Rami Levy founder and CEO of discount supermarket chain Rami Levy Chain Stores Hashikma Marketing 2006 Ltd. (TASE: RMLI) has appointed his daughter Yafit Attias as co-CEO. The company's board of directors has approved the appointment, which must now be approved by the annual shareholders meeting and she is expected to become co-CEO on January 1, 2025.
The company said that Attias will focus on the supermarket chain's loyalty club, marketing, advertising, operations and special projects. Attias began working at her father's company 25 years ago and has served in a range of positions and for the past decade has been VP marketing.
Rami Levy said, "For many years Yafit has taken an active part in the management of the group, during which time she has consolidated her management capabilities and skills. The management and I are delighted to appoint her to the position of co-CEO in the group, and she will help lead the business and marketing development of the company."
He added, "Yafit has served as the group's VP marketing and developed our loyalty club, the marketing department and the relationship with the suppliers on the sales floor. Yafit has been a full partner in forming the strategy for logistics, operations, the company's private brand, building the company's new marketing plan, and more. Her activities in the field of marketing have contributed greatly to the fact that the Rami Levy brand is known in every home in Israel. Yafit is an asset in the retail sector, and I am sure that together we will continue to realize the strategy and deepen and expand the group's areas of activity."
Attias said, "I am proud to be part of a chain that has grown to be the leader in the retail market and to win the trust of our customers as the cheapest basket in the country, year after year. I thank the management that entrusts me with the responsibility of continuing to develop the chain and bring it to new heights in a competitive market."
Rami Levy told "Globes," "The time has come, after she has studied and acquired all the knowledge. The business is developing and growing. We will divide the work between us, each in certain areas, which will leave me time to develop in other directions, to develop existing companies and locate more companies, businesses and assets, with the aim of entering more areas. The company is not only food retailing, and we will continue to develop Good Pharm, Communications and Cofix to create synergy and serve the customers."
"Heir is a difficult word, because it's my father"
Attias, who has a BA, MBA and law degree has been groomed from the outset to become CEO, with Levy training her in recent years to take up the position alongside him. When listed by "Globes' as one of the most promising young Israelis of 2018 she told G magazine, "Heir is a difficult word, because it is my father." But I know that my father trusts me and my judgment very much. He follows my activity and knows that I am familiar with all the departments and all the employees."
"Of course, when the moment comes, if I feel that I'm not ready yet, I won't take it. I'm still in the learning phase. It's a complex business, certainly when it comes to a stock exchange company. But I push here, and my father pushes me there, helps me, teaches me, sits down with me on the financial statements. I already live the field, and move around between the branches and meet the managers. He is my mentor in the world of the stock market."
Relatively weak financial results
Rami Levy's financial reports for the second quarter and first half of 2024, published last month, showed relatively weak results for the chain despite the improvement in the profits of its rivals, who due to the war benefited from the stoppage of flights abroad and increased consumption by domestic customers, as well as price rises in the industry.
In the second quarter of 2024, Rami Levy's operating profit fell by almost 22% compared with the corresponding quarter last year, to NIS 94 million. The chain said the fall in profits was due to discount offers for Passover (which took place at the end of April this year, and last year took place in the first quarter), as well as the war, which led to a drop in sales in branches in the north of the country, and the chain's decision to reduce online sales due to a lack of manpower. The branches of Rami Levy that were hit hardest were in Kiryat Shmona, Akko and Nahariya.
The chain's revenue rose 0.7% in the first half of 2024 to NIS 3.58 billion and operating profit rose 10% to NIS 183 million. Net profit in the first half of 2024 rose 22% to Nis 130 million, compared with NIS 108 million in the first half of 2023.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on September 10, 2024.
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