Michel-Edouard Leclerc, the president of French retailer E. Leclerc, has said the group is planning to become the first food retailer in France to issue virtual receipts.

The scheme, he wrote in his blog, would apply to loyalty card holders with smartphones, who would receive a virtual till receipt on the smartphone number registered with the retailer.

Discover B2B Marketing That Performs

Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.

Find out more

Leclerc’s management discussions with his membership and checkout staff suggested most of the till receipts that are not left behind at the checkout become scrumpled little balls of paper within days.

Customers will still be able to ask for a receipt, even if they have registered a smartphone number with the retailer.

Proprietary online receipt companies such as eReceipts and Yreceipts have made progress since 2010, with London restaurants and bars among their users. Backers of eReceipts include former Tesco managing director Ian MacLaurin, who launched the Tesco Clubcard and who regards eReceipts as an extension to loyalty cards.

The biggest corporate adopter remains Apple’s iStore, which has been issuing virtual receipts for years all over the world, including France. The convergence of e-tailing with bricks-and-mortar retailing makes a virtual transaction platform increasingly acceptable at checkouts.

GlobalData Strategic Intelligence

US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?

Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.

By GlobalData

Just Food Excellence Awards - Nominations Closed

Nominations are now closed for the Just Food Excellence Awards. A big thanks to all the organisations that entered – your response has been outstanding, showcasing exceptional innovation, leadership, and impact.

Excellence in Action
Winning five categories in the 2025 Just Food Excellence Awards, Centric Software is setting the pace for digital transformation in food and FMCG. Explore how its integrated PLM and PXM suite delivers faster launches, smarter compliance and data-driven growth for complex, multi-channel product portfolios.

Discover the Impact