Carrefour La Neuvillette Strike: Workers Walk Out Over Cora Transition

Workers at the Carrefour hypermarket in La Neuvillette, Reims, France, went on strike Wednesday, according to reports. The strike involves employees from former Cora hypermarkets following their acquisition by Carrefour, though the specific reasons for the strike were not immediately detailed in initial reports.

The unrest comes as Carrefour continues to rebrand former Cora locations across France. The transition began in October 2024, with the goal of converting all 60 hypermarkets. Carrefour acquired the 60 Cora hypermarkets and 115 Match supermarkets in early July 2024, but the Match chain will retain its identity, particularly in the north and east of France.

The rebranding process is being rolled out in three waves. The first wave of nineteen stores began the transition on October 1st, followed by a second wave of twenty in mid-October, and a final wave of twenty-one starting at the end of October. During the two-week rebranding period, stores remain open while signage is updated and Carrefour products are introduced.

Carrefour has promised customers a price reduction of at least 10% on more than 3,000 products as part of the rebranding. The company also plans to replace the Cora loyalty card program with the Carrefour program by January.

The acquisition of Cora by Carrefour follows a broader trend of consolidation in the French retail market. In 2018, Carrefour workers protested across France over planned job cuts as part of a cost-saving initiative. That earlier round of cuts involved the elimination of 2,400 jobs and a 2.8 billion euro investment in online shopping.

The transition from Cora to Carrefour in Cormontreuil and La Neuvillette began in late October 2024. The facade of the Cormontreuil hypermarket was changed on Monday, October 28th, and La Neuvillette followed on Tuesday, October 29th. Approximately 500 workers are employed at the two locations, and Carrefour has stated that their jobs are not affected by the change in ownership and branding.

A Facebook post from Wednesday indicated continued worker discontent at the Reims Carrefour (formerly Cora) location, with commenters echoing similar grievances related to the acquisition. One commenter stated, “Carrefour Neuvillette à Reims, pareil ils sont raison c’est les mêmes revendications, depuis que cora a été racheter.”

The Cora chain has now completely disappeared from the French market, with the exception of seven hypermarkets in Belgium, which will remain under the Louis Delhaize group for the time being.