Eroski will distribute returns 15 years later

This afternoon, Eroski held its Ordinary General Meeting in Barakaldo (Bizkaia), attended by 355 representatives out of a total of 520 delegates invited, representing a turnout of 68%. The day, marked by particular emotion due to the handover of the presidency of the Governing Council after 14 years with Leire Mugerza at the helm of the governing body, also served to approve the annual accounts for the 2025 financial year and several strategic decisions linked to strengthening the cooperative project.

Returns are back

The General Assembly has approved the allocation of €16.1 million of the profit to returns for worker-members, representing 40% of the distributable surplus. Eroski will thus resume distributing returns 15 years later, reviving one of the most defining features of its cooperative model.

The cooperative thus brings to a close a period marked by shared effort, the transformation of the organisation and the progressive strengthening of its economic and financial position.

Speaking at the Assembly, Rosa Carabel, CEO of the Eroski Group, emphasised: “The progress made in recent years reflects a cooperative organisation’s ability to tackle complex situations through participation, commitment and shared responsibility”.

Carabel also wished to emphasise the collective significance of the moment the organisation is experiencing: “Recovering returns means recognising the effort, commitment and trust of all the people who have made this transformation possible”.

She added: “It has been an exceptional year and we must cherish the memory of it. We must uphold Eroski’s legacy: a resilient social enterprise project, in which we recognise that our time here is temporary and that we must leave a better project for those who come after us. We are at a point in time where we can build the future, with our sights set on the legacy.”

“It has been an exceptional year and we must cherish the memory of it. We must uphold Eroski’s legacy: a resilient social enterprise project, in which we recognise that our time here is temporary and that we must leave a better project for those who come after us. We are at a point in time where we can build the future, with our sights set on the legacy.”

Financial statements approved

The General Meeting has approved the cooperative’s separate annual accounts and the group’s consolidated accounts for the 2025 financial year, together with the management report for the year.

Among the main decisions taken during the meeting were:

• To allocate €16.1 million to returns for working members, equivalent to 40% of the distributable surplus.
• To allocate €4 million to COFIP, equivalent to 10% of the distributable surplus.
• To approve the age limit of 62 for the repayment of capital to retired members

Change of leadership

The General Assembly has completed the handover of the presidency of the Eroski Governing Council following Leire Mugerza’s 16 years on the governing body, 14 of them as president.

In an emotional speech, Mugerza looked back on the journey over the years, recalling the challenges, difficulties and lessons learnt during one of the most demanding periods in the cooperative’s recent history.

The outgoing president was given a long standing ovation by the Assembly and, visibly moved, expressed her gratitude to everyone who forms part of the Eroski family: consumer members, like herself, worker members, management teams, the Social Council and the Governing Council.

Mugerza also reaffirmed the relevance of the cooperative model and the value of people as the cornerstone of the project, emphasising that none of what has been achieved would have been possible without all the people who bring Eroski to life.

The Assembly thus marks the start of a new institutional phase for the cooperative, with Maite Legarra taking the helm as Chair of the Governing Council. Legarra holds a degree in Business Administration and Management, an MBA, and a PhD in Advanced Organisational Management and Social Economy from Mondragon Unibertsitatea. She currently works at MONDRAGON in the Talent Attraction and Development department, with a career linked to the cooperative movement, people management and talent development.

Eroski currently employs over 28,200 professionals, of whom 8,336 are worker-members, and operates a retail network of 1,508 omnichannel outlets. In 2025, the Group achieved a turnover of €6.081 billion, further strengthening its operational and financial stability.