Johan Vermeire, relevance over exhaustiveness

POTY - Johan Vermeire leads Colruyt Group’s B2B division following a clear horizon line, preferring relevance to exhaustiveness in a sector where the offering can quickly become oversized.

© GONDOLA FOODSERVICE

Johan Vermeire is General Manager B2B within the Colruyt Group. He oversees the group's professional activities, including Solucious, and manages a model combining delivery and cash & carry to meet the various needs of the professional market.

He began his career at Delhaize before seizing an international opportunity via the Prince Albert Fund as a trainee at Le Pain Quotidien in New York. He then returned to Delhaize, where he rose to become Procurement Director Fresh, in charge of strategic categories.

Under his management, the group's B2B division continues its expansion. Solucious grew from a turnover of 130 million euros in 2019 to 272 million euros in 2024. Including all of Colruyt Group's B2B activities, the scope is now approaching one billion euros in turnover.

In early 2024, the group acquired Valfrais. In October 2024, Solucious took over the wholesaler Délidis, strengthening its presence in the Belgian professional market.

This year, Johan Vermeire is among the three nominees for the Personality of the Year (POTY) award in the Wholesalers Foodservice category.

Gondola Insight

The development of B2B at Colruyt Group is not an opportunistic extension. It is part of a logic of organization and discipline.

Johan Vermeire applies a clear method to the professional market: rationalizing rather than expanding, selecting rather than accumulating. The choice of an assortment of approximately 12,000 references reflects this orientation. The goal is not to be exhaustive, but to be relevant.

This approach involves constant trade-offs. It implies refusing certain requests to preserve coherence and economic efficiency. In a sector where the offering can quickly become oversized, this restraint constitutes a guiding principle.

The growth of the B2B scope and the acquisitions made in 2024 show a desire to broaden the footprint while maintaining this discipline.

Johan Vermeire acts in an environment where the boundary between retail and foodservice is becoming more permeable. His role consists of organizing this convergence without losing clarity.

Structuring without overcomplicating is a demanding exercise. This is his responsibility today.