Carrefour, a major French retail chain, has announced plans to relaunch its Carrefour Mobile brand this summer, according to the news outlet Informé. The company confirmed the move to the media, marking a return to the mobile market after a long hiatus. Carrefour Mobile was originally launched in 2006, first in Belgium and then in France shortly after. While the brand still operates in Belgium, it was discontinued in France in 2015 when Carrefour redirected customers to Sosh, a mobile operator it previously owned. Now, the company aims to reintroduce the brand by selling mobile plans in its stores and on its website. Behind the scenes, Carrefour Mobile will be managed entirely by Orange, France’s largest mobile operator. This partnership is not new, as Carrefour had previously shifted from being an independent virtual operator (MVNO) to a branded partner of Orange in 2012. At that time, the company abandoned its own network in response to competition from Free Mobile, which offered low-cost plans. The current return to the market resembles the earlier model, with Carrefour offering plans under the Orange network. However, no specific pricing or launch date has been announced yet, though Carrefour claims the plans will be competitive based on customer feedback. Carrefour’s CEO, Alexandre Bompard, has been on Orange’s board since 2017, raising questions about potential conflicts of interest. However, the Informé reports that this relationship did not influence the decision to relaunch Carrefour Mobile. The timing of the relaunch appears strategic, as the market is undergoing changes. SFR, one of France’s major mobile operators, is being broken up and its assets distributed among the other three major operators—Orange, Bouygues, and Sosh. This restructuring is expected to create more room for new competitors and alternative providers. Carrefour is not the only retailer re-entering the mobile market. Auchan Telecom, Reglo Mobile (the E.Leclerc brand), and soon Lidl—through its investment in 1Global—are already offering mobile plans in France and other countries. With the market evolving and new opportunities emerging, Carrefour’s return could signal a growing trend of retailers expanding into telecommunications to offer customers more options and value.