UTRECHT, The Netherlands, April 7, 2010 /PRNewswire/ --
-- First French Retailers Offering the Product are Auchan, Carrefour, Cora and Leclerc
Sara Lee Corp. (NYSE: SLE) announced today its new L'OR Espresso capsules have reached retail stores in France. The company delivered yesterday the first batch of one million of its innovative capsules to more than 30 retail distribution warehouses throughout France. These warehouses, in turn, are providing products to more than 2,000 hypermarkets and supermarkets from the most important retailers in the country, such as Auchan, Carrefour, Cora and Leclerc.
"With L'OR Espresso capsules available in retail stores consumers can enjoy great quality espresso from a great brand and with great convenience," said Frank van Oers, chief executive officer of Sara Lee's International Beverage and Bakery division. "This is an important first step in our strategy of broad retail distribution for L'OR Espresso capsules and we look forward to a very successful introduction of the product throughout France."
Sara Lee expects to reach 50 percent of national weighted distribution during the month of April, promptly ramping up to more than 80 percent in May. L'OR Espresso capsules will be available also online at http://www.lorespresso.fr later this month. The recommended retail price for a box of 10 L'OR Espresso capsules is EUR2.99 and applies to all four varieties of the product - Delizioso, Decaffeinato, Splendente and Forza.
L'OR Espresso capsules are a new espresso capsule compatible with coffee appliances by Nespresso(R) - a registered trademark of Société des Produits Nestlé S.A., a company not associated with Sara Lee. All varieties are made with only 100 percent Arabica coffee grown and harvested in a socially and environmentally sustainable way, following the UTZ CERTIFIED(R) program.
Sara Lee is the world's leading buyer of UTZ CERTIFIED(R) coffee. The company recently announced a commitment to source 40,000 tons of certified coffee in 2010: a 33 percent increase over 2009 levels.
Sara Lee's International Beverage division operates in more than 40 countries around the world and generated $3 billion in net sales in the fiscal year ended in June 2009.
About Sara Lee Corporation
Each and every day, Sara Lee (NYSE: SLE) delights millions of consumers and customers around the world. The company has one of the world's best-loved and leading portfolios with its innovative and trusted food, beverage, household and body care brands, including Ambi Pur, Ball Park, Douwe Egberts, Hillshire Farm, Jimmy Dean, Kiwi, Sanex, Sara Lee and Senseo. Collectively, these brands generate almost $13 billion in annual net sales covering approximately 180 countries. The Sara Lee community consists of 41,000 employees worldwide. Please visit http://www.saralee.com for the latest news and in-depth information about Sara Lee and its brands.
Contacts: Media: Sophie Cornet, +33-1-5856-6674 (France), Ernesto Duran, +31-30-297-2592 (International), Mike Cummins, +1-630-598-8412 (US); Analysts: Aaron Hoffman, +1-630-598-8739
