Conad buys Auchan stores in Italy and becomes the largest large-scale retail chain in our country, openly challenging the Coop.
The announcement came this morning, May 14th. The Bolognese company has signed an agreement with Auchan Retail for the acquisition of the assets of Auchan Retail Italia.
In numbers we speak of 1.600 points of sale among hypermarkets, supermarkets, proximity shops with the Auchan and Simply brands, located in Italy in a complementary way to the Conad network. According to the unions, 46 hypermarkets and about 230 supermarkets (which belong to the subsidiary Sma Simply) switched from Auchan to Vodafone.
"Today a large Italian company is born, which will bring value to Italian companies and consumers”, commented the CEO of Conad, Francesco Pugliese.
For the completion of the acquisition, whose closing is expected in the second half of 2019, it will be necessary the go-ahead from the Antitrust. It should be emphasized that the supermarkets managed by Auchan Retail in Sicily and the Lillapois drugstores are excluded from the agreement. The agreement also provides that the shopping centers in which the Auchan Retail Italia points of sale are located will continue to be managed by the Ceetrus company, which continues its business in Italy. The acquisition will be conducted by Conad with the support of Wrm Group, a company specializing in commercial real estate.
“We want to improve the current difficult situation of Auchan Retail's activities in Italy and allow Conad to continue, through this acquisition, its ambitious development plan in the country,” said the president of Auchan Retail, Edgard Bonte.
Speaking of the Italian market, thanks to this acquisition, Conad will become the leading group in Italy in large-scale distribution, undermining the Coop, with a market share that will rise from 13 to 19% (14,2% for Coop) and an aggregate turnover which, on a pro-forma basis and with reference to 2018 data, stands at 17,1 billion euros.
“A historic trend reversal in a vital sector for the enhancement of Made in Italy agri-food after foreign shopping has brought abroad, three historical brands out of four”. With these words, the president of Coldiretti Ettore Prandini, commented the acquisition. "Conad - he continues - secures the role of national leader in organized distribution through which around 74% of agri-food products are marketed today and therefore represents - underlines Prandini - a decisive factor in guaranteeing outlets and competitiveness for Made in Italy".
