Mega Image, part of the Ahold Delhaize retail group, has announced its acquisition of Zanfir, a supermarket chain in the Vrancea region of eastern Romania.
The transaction, which is subject to approval by the Romanian Competition Council, will 'further strengthen' the group's presence in the region, the group said.
The ten stores in the Zanfir chain are to be integrated into Mega Image's network, and upgraded to Mega Image and Shop & Go stores.
“The acquisition of the most important player in the Vrancea market is part of our strategy to develop and expand into new territories,” said Mega Image Brand President Mircea Moga. “We look forward to meet our new customers and offer them our range of quality products, inspiration and new shopping experiences.”
Established in 1995, Mega Image is one of the largest supermarket chains in Romania, with a network comprising 677 stores and brands such as Mega Image, Shop & Go and Gusturi Românești.
Analyst Viewpoint
Commenting on the acquisition, Bruno Monteyne of Bernstein Research said, "On the one hand, one could say this is a small increase of the Romanian store network and not very news worthy. On the other hand, it provides further evidence of Ahold-Delhaize's strategy of strengthening their market positions through organic growth and in-fill M&A.
"This is another good example (after King Kullen stores) of how Ahold-Delhaize is able to accelerate its top line growth in a capital-efficient way by buying up some of the many struggling local grocers. The change in strategy is real."
© 2019 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
