The Kroger Co. (KR) Q1 2023 Earnings Call Transcript

Prepared Remarks

Questions and Answers

Call Participants

Prepared Remarks:

Operator

Good morning and welcome to The Kroger Co. First Quarter 2023 Earnings Conference Call. [Operator Instructions] Please note this event is being recorded.

I would now like to turn the conference over to Rob Quast, Senior Director, Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

Rob Quast

Good morning. Thank you for joining us for Kroger's first quarter 2023 earnings call. I am joined today by Kroger's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Rodney McMullen; and Chief Financial Officer, Gary Millerchip.

Before we begin, I want to remind you that today's discussions will include forward-looking statements. We want to caution you that such statements are predictions and actual events or results can differ materially.

A detailed discussion of the many factors that we believe may have a material effect on our business on an ongoing basis is contained in our SEC filings. The Kroger Company assumes no obligation to update that information.

After our prepared remarks, we look forward to taking your questions. In order to cover a broad range of topics from as many of you as we can, we ask that you please limit yourself to one question and one follow-up question if necessary.

I will now turn the call over to Rodney.

Rodney McMullen

Thank you, Rob. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining us today. We're off to a great start in 2023 with results that reflect the strength of our go-to market strategy. Kroger is continuing to navigate a challenged environment as our customers manage the effects of high inflation, fewer SNAP dollars, and macroeconomic uncertainty.

Despite these conditions, customers continue to prioritize their spending on food and our value proposition is resonating. The investments and productivity improvements we made over recent years has strengthened our business, allowing us to sustainably invest in price for our customers while maintaining margins. By delivering great value and driving strategic initiatives, we are sustaining momentum, which gives us the confidence that we will continue delivering on our commitments.

Many of our customer preferences and trends that emerged last year have as expected accelerated into the first quarter. Customers are actively looking for ways to save and we are focused on providing a fresh and affordable shopping experience with zero compromise on quality, selection or convenience.

As we've seen over recent quarters, our customers are saving through loyalty discounts, including weekly specials and yellow tag promotions, engaging in our broad assortment of our brand's products and redeeming personalized digital coupons and fuel rewards.