Rema-sjefen med prisløfte: – Vi skal tilbake til røttene

Rema-sjef Christian Hoel has been in his position for roughly two and a half years. Kiwi has been Norway's largest grocery chain, surpassing Rema 1000 in that time. Hoel is aware of the mission to regain the top spot. Several avenues exist to achieve this goal, such as opening more successful stores and appealing to more customers.

Maintaining a reputation as the lowest-priced retailer is crucial. However, Hoel is not satisfied with the current pricing dynamics in the grocery industry in 2026. He sees too much fluctuation and confusion in pricing, even among Norvegia cheese prices. He believes they should return to the basics of providing stable, low prices.

Customers often misunderstand the actual costs of products due to numerous campaigns. While they will continue offering discounts on key campaign items, they aim to reduce the pressure on less relevant and unattractive products. For instance, coffee is a strong traffic driver, but stable low prices on all essential items for dinner are more important.

Rema 1000 started by cutting and locking prices during Easter and is now expanding this campaign to coincide with school start. They plan to lock prices on 170 daily items forever, not just during a short campaign period. This is not the first time Hoel has expressed dissatisfaction with Rema's pricing strategies. Ole Robert Reitan, a guest on E24's "Stopp Verden" podcast, criticized the dysfunctions in low-price strategies.

Rema's low-price campaigns have had inconsistent discount periods over the years. Hoel emphasizes that this is the first wave of truly powerful stable, low, and locked prices that will gain market attention. He is confident this will provoke a reaction in the market. If a competitor lowers the price on tacos or similar items, they shouldn't follow suit.

They should always remain competitive on prices, every day and every week. If competitors keep running fluctuating campaigns and customers follow them, how will they break free from fluctuating prices? They will lock the price, making items cheaper, and thus reducing fluctuating prices. However, this applies only to 170 of many thousands of product lines.

This is the starting shot, and it's on products that matter most for everyday trade. Another factor contributing to criticism of grocery prices lately is the bonus schemes the chains offer. Hoel acknowledges that Rema 1000 has expanded its loyalty program by partnering with Spenn. Points earned from other chains like Norwegian and Strawberry can now be used at Rema 1000, and vice versa.

He wonders how this loyalty program aligns with a return to stable, low prices. It's a good question, but it's also in Odd Reitan's book that nostalgia isn't always necessary. They must follow market trends and cater to customer preferences, and many customers are very interested in loyalty programs. Spenn is a response to this trend.

Extra recently won the retail battle for the second year in a row. Rema 1000 lagged behind in this regard. Hoel points out that Rema 1000 has been lagging in opening new stores or repositioning for a long time. Competitors have opened more new stores or repositioned themselves than Rema 1000.