French-owned retailer Carrefour has reportedly stepped up the current retail price war in Spain with the launch of a new publicity campaign aimed at drawing hypermarket shoppers' attention to its competitors' prices.
For the past few days, the company has posted prices set by its main rival, Mercadona, alongside its own in two of its hypermarket stores in the Spanish capital, Madrid.
In addition, it is understood that customers are also being presented with a price comparison stand at the entrance to the two outlets, showing them the difference in prices for five selected products at Carrefour, Mercadona and Alcampo.
The practice of comparing prices and informing consumers of the findings has been a major feature of recent price competition in the UK, France and the US, but is unprecedented in Spain.
Currently being trialled on around 250 food and grocery products, the retailer plans to assess the impact of the campaign before considering rolling it out nationwide.
Carrefour, which also operates the hard-discount chain Dia in Spain, has found itself facing intense competition during the past year from companies like Alcampo (part of rival French operator Auchan), Mercadona and German discounter Lidl, all of which have been pushing to gain market share.
According to Spanish daily El Mundo, Mercadona has instigated a major change in its retail strategy this year, removing around 1,000 products from its offering in order to trim costs and lower prices.
Alcampo, meanwhile, has reportedly gained around 6 per cent market share this year thanks to a policy of low prices, while Lidl has apparently seen its share of the market rise by over 15 per cent following a number of store openings.
