Once a Retail Empire, Carrefour Struggles to Win Back Investors

Carrefour SA pioneered hypermarkets in France and sold the brand around the world in an ambitious expansion that started more than five decades ago, reaching a market value that was once higher than that of luxury-goods empire LVMH.

Since then, Carrefour’s fortunes have waned as the chain struggles to compete in its cut-throat home market and it retreats from overseas. Its business is worth a fraction of LVMH’s, the current global flag-bearer for French business, and Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Alexandre Bompard is struggling to convince investors that he can propel it through a transformation.