Because of its growth potential, the Chinese market is enjoying almost as much attention from Carrefour's management as the group's home market in France. Two questions are raised invariably at management meetings in the head office, according to Eric Legros, president and CEO of Carrefour China.

One is "How are we doing in France?" and the other is "What have we been doing in China?" Legros says.

Abandoning the leisurely pace of expansion in the first 10 years of exploration in the Chinese market, Carrefour, in 2005, began to step on the throttle and switched into high gear while opening new outlets. In the three years since, the company has opened 60 new stores, the same number opened in the previous 10 years.

In that rush for expansion, the company has not only opened more new stores in the major cities, but also in the second-tier cities and townships in the central and western regions of the country. For instance, Carrefour has five stores in Chengdu and four stores in Chongqing.

Legros, who became Carrefour's CEO in China in 2006, says he believes the company owes its success in this market not because of any fancy marketing strategy, but rather because of its dedicated application to its core business model.

"We have five concepts to (operating) supermarket: one-stop shopping, low prices fresh goods, shelf service and free parking," he says.

"The presence of Carrefour has accelerated competitiveness in the Chinese retailing industry, enabling customers to buy goods cheaper than before," Legros says.

Although the company's business model has remained international, its staff in China has increasingly been localized, which, according to Legros, has greatly contributed to its success.

Although Legros doesn't speak Chinese, he feels quite proud of being treated as "one of them" by his local staff, who call him "lao zong", a common Chinese way of addressing one's boss.