Carrefour Israel Leadership Rift Emerges Ahead of IPO
A significant rift has developed between Carrefour Israel's CEO, Inbal Harsson, and its co-chairman, Michael Luboshitz, just weeks before the company's planned stock market debut. Sources indicate that the transition period between Harsson and Luboshitz was brief and lacked thoroughness, stemming from Harsson's desire for managerial independence and a general lack of chemistry between the two. Consequently, Harsson primarily communicates with Zvika Shveimer, CEO of the controlling shareholder Electra Consumer Products, who also serves as co-chairman.
Luboshitz, who led the chain since 2023, was appointed co-chairman alongside Shveimer in May, preceding Harsson's arrival as CEO a month and a half ago. Harsson brought her own team, including a chief of staff and deputy CEOs. Several senior executives have departed since her appointment, including VP of Trade Yaniv Cohen, who left after learning Harsson intended to appoint Rami Shtivi to the role. Other departures include VP of Information Systems Yevgeny Kotkovnik and VP of Economics and Control May Shahar. Harsson, a respected figure in the food market, previously held senior roles at Coca-Cola Israel, Tnuva, and Kimberly-Clark.
Harsson faces the challenge of transitioning from a supplier-side role to retail management, moving from a company with strong brands to a retail operation that has experienced losses, necessitating deep efficiency measures and store sales. She is the fifth CEO appointed to Carrefour Israel in the last six years. Luboshitz, with experience from previous retail roles and an options holding in Global Retail, managed the conversion of Yeinot Bitan to the Carrefour brand, stabilized the French brand in Israel, oversaw the conversion of 150 stores, expanded private label offerings, recruited foreign workers, and secured a deal for 70% of Peri Market.
These initiatives, along with efficiency measures, moved the company into profitability after years of losses. Carrefour reported a first-half EBITDA of NIS 76 million, up from NIS 66 million year-on-year, with a second-quarter operating profit of approximately NIS 42 million and a net profit of about NIS 8 million. Despite these gains, Carrefour's sales decreased by 1.5% in 2025 to NIS 3.28 billion, with same-store sales dropping 9.3% in the fourth quarter and 2.6% in the first half of the current year. Harsson reportedly plans to discontinue the discounted basket initiative proposed by Economy Minister Nir Barkat.
Carrefour Israel is preparing for an IPO in November. France Israel Group, the owner of Global Retail which operates Carrefour in Israel, filed a draft prospectus for a Tel Aviv Stock Exchange listing valued between NIS 750-950 million. Electra Consumer Products, holding 49.49% of France Israel Group, is considering selling some of its shares in the subsidiary due to concentration limitation laws.