Rami Levy is seeking to expand the credit club and basket of financial products offered by Rami Levy Chain Stores Hashikma Marketing 2006 Ltd. (TASE:RMLI), and is likely to enter the insurance field, sources inform "Globes." Levy is expanding his management staff for this purpose, and has recruited former Israel Consumer Council deputy director Eran Wolf as VP club and financial services.
Rami Levy Chain Stores VP marketing Yafit Atias-Levy, Rami Levy's daughter, who manages the chain's customers club, said that Wolf would be responsible for activity of the chain's customers club and credit card club, as well as for expanding the basket of additional services that the chain wishes to provide, such as insurance, and development of existing services, such as tourism, which the company recently began providing.
Wolf's appointment is part of the strategic plan of Levy and his daughter for strengthening the chain's customers club and increasing the number of its credit cardholders, thereby bolstering the volume of credit card clearance.
Expanding the basket of financial services has become the aspiration of the retail chains, because of the fees they charge for them. All of the chains are taking steps to expand this activity. Early this year, Rami Levy Chain Stores upgraded its agreement with Isracard, so that it will be able to enjoy a large share of Isracard's revenue from this activity with customer club members in a joint company in which Rami Levy owns an 80% stake.
In insurance, however, commencing activity is more difficult than in other areas. As revealed by "Globes," Shufersal Ltd. (TASE:SAE), Israel's largest retail chain has been striving for over a year to start providing insurance services in partnership with AIG in the belief that this activity will begin in 2019, subject to final approval from the Supervisor of the Capital Markets, Insurance, and Savings.
Another financial product now offered by the retail chains is loans to customers club members is available from Rami Levi Chain Stores, Super-Pharm, Victory Supermarket Chain Ltd. (TASE: VCTR), and Shufersal.
Four months ago, it was reported that Rami Levy Chain Stores and the Daka90 group were founding a tourism venture to provide tourism services on preferential terms to members of the Rami Levy customers club. Rami Levy was following Shufersal, which became the pioneer among retail chains in tourism by founding a joint tourism company with the Gulliver company.
As of the end of 2017, Rami Levy Chain Stores reported that its customers club had 400,000 members, some of them holding credit cards and others club cards with credit loaded on them. The group stated in this context that it "regards the customers' club as a tool for increasing customer loyalty and providing solutions to the customer's special needs. The company is constantly developing this tool for additional uses to the consumer's benefit, including outside the customer's purchases in the group's stores, while emphasizing both segmenting of the customers and innovation in the group aimed at benefiting all of its customers."
The appointment of Wolf as a VP in the group follows another senior appointment by Levy in recent days. Last week, Levy announced the appointment of former G. Willi-Food Investments Ltd. (TASE: WLFD) CEO Iram Graiver as CEO of the Cofix group, which Rami Levy took over a few months ago.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on October 23, 2018
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