Carrefour, the world's second-biggest retailer, will forge ahead with a programme to downsize its supermarkets in Europe after dismissing José Luís Duran, its chief executive, yesterday.

With shoppers turning their backs on hypermarkets, Lars Olofsson, his replacement, will be under pressure to accelerate the transformation of the group. Mr Olofsson, 57, was poached from Nestlé, a blow to the Swiss food giant, where he had been tipped as a future chief executive.

His priority will be to reform the Carrefour chain, whose out-of-town, all-in-one stores are no longer seen as adapted to the demands of an ageing European population.

Mr Olofsson is set to shift the focus on to food and away from consumer goods, clothes and other products amid competition from specialist retailers.

His arrival comes with shareholders - notably Blue Capital, the investment vehicle jointly owned by Bernard Arnault, the chairman of LVMH, and Colony Capital, the American private equity firm - showing impatience with the pace of change under Mr Duran, 43.

Although Carrefour surprised analysts last month when it said that it was on course for a 7 per cent growth in sales this year, its share price has fallen by 45 per cent this year.

Blue Capital, which has taken a 14 per cent stake in the retail chain, is understood to see Mr Olofsson, a Swede who speaks fluent French, as the man to turn around the group's fortunes.

Alexandre Iatrides, an analyst for Richelieu Finance in Paris, said: “Carrefour needs an electric shock because the group is in a situation where value has been destroyed.”

The appointment of Mr Olofsson prompted a rise in Carrefour's shares, which closed up €1.05, or 3.52 per cent, at €30.86 in Paris.

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