Chairman Josef Czok could not complain about a lack of interest. Around 3,000 colleagues watched this year's works council meeting West 2 on their computer screens. The activity report for 2022 presented by Czok covered a wide range of different projects - from internships at PENNY to the REWE DNA rollout.

And the current calendar year is unlikely to be any less demanding. This is because the challenges in the stores are still numerous, as CEO Lionel Souque explained. Although the first signs of easing can currently be observed - for example, electricity prices and commodity prices such as oil are currently falling again significantly. However, the consequences of the war in Ukraine, inflation and rising prices for customers across the board are likely to continue to impact consumer habits. "Price sensitivity for food remains high," emphasised Lionel Souque. Overall, however, the CEO believes that REWE Group is well equipped with its current strategy and that revenue and earnings are also developing well.

However, the good operating results were also necessary, emphasised CFO Telerik Shishmanov, because at almost three billion euros, investments also reached a record level in the past year. This development was also due, among other things, to rapidly rising prices, for example for shop fittings and construction costs.

One topic that directly affected a large number of the colleagues who joined the company was the merger of REWE Systems with REWE digital to form the new REWE digital with 1,900 employees. Digital and Technology Management Board member Christoph Eltze provided an overview of the current status and took an exciting look at the possibilities and the future of retail.

Digitalisation has long since arrived on the shop floor. Current examples include (partially) autonomous stores such as REWE Pick & Go, nahkauf boxes and the shift from paper to digital handouts. Management Board member Peter Maly called for flexibility in order to be able to react quickly to new challenges in the competitive environment.

Digitalisation is also an important topic for PENNY, especially from a customer perspective, explained Divisional Director Dr Stefan Görgens. In its anniversary year - PENNY celebrates its 50th birthday in 2023 - the 2,100 PENNY shops in Germany are doing particularly well. With an increase of 8.4 per cent in 2022, PENNY was at the top of all discounters in Germany and expanded its market share. The new "market hall" concept also had a positive impact on customer perception.

"Digitalisation is also of fundamental importance in purchasing," emphasised Hans-Jürgen Moog, the REWE Group Management Board member responsible for the merchandise business. Purchasing and category management today must master market research, learn from all sources: understand buying behaviour and international markets, make market visits, talk to retailers, engage in personal dialogue and be able to read and interpret figures. And then translate this into the right product ranges, prices and so on. Ultimately, this means bringing these figures, data and information into optimal harmony with the means of digitalisation in order to work efficiently and achieve the highest possible hit rate in satisfying customer needs.

Despite all the digitalisation, people remain the most important quality factor. Dr Daniela Büchel, Board Member for Human Resources and Sustainability, noted: "REWE Group is perceived as an attractive employer and the number of applications is high." Equally positive: the proportion of women in management positions has increased. Nevertheless, recruiting and staff turnover remain the major challenges in HR.