Delhaize Group

Delhaize Group (French pronunciation: ​[dəlɛːz]) is a food retailer headquartered in Anderlecht, Brussels, Belgium, and operating in seven countries and on three continents. The principal activity of Delhaize Group is the operation of food supermarkets.

History

Delhaize Group was founded near Charleroi, Belgium, in 1867 by Jules Delhaize and his brothers Auguste, Edouard and Adolphe. He was helped in this endeavor by his future brother-in-law, Jules Vieujant. For their new company, they chose the lion, the symbol of strength, as their logo. They also chose a motto: unity is strength.

As of 31 December 2014, Delhaize Group had a sales network (which includes directly operated, franchised, and affiliated stores) of 3,402 stores and employed approximately 150,000 people (excluding the stores and related associates of divested and discontinued operations). Store formats are primarily supermarkets, which represent 85% of Delhaize Group's sales network. Delhaize Group's sales network also includes other store formats such as neighborhood stores, convenience stores, and specialty stores. The company is actively engaged with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Energy Star program to manage energy efficiency across its U.S. facilities.