Asda To Acquire Petrol Stations Operator EG Group UK
ESM - European Supermarket Magazine
The industry magazine for C-suite executives and procurement managers working in the European grocery retail sector.
British supermarket group Asda has announced plans to acquire petrol station operator EG Group's UK and Ireland business to create a company with combined revenues of nearly ￡30 billion (€34.62 billion). Asda, Britain's third-largest grocer, and EG are both owned by brothers Zuber and Mohsin Issa and private equity group TDR Capital. It said it would acquire around 350 petrol stations and over 1,000 food-to-go locations in the deal, which is expected to close in the fourth quarter. Asda said it planned to invest more than ￡150 million (€173.1 million) within the next three years to fully integrate the combined business.
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The?British?government is looking at plans to have retailers?cap the prices?of basic food items such as bread and milk, the?Telegraph?reported, as the cost of such essentials continued to rise in the double digits. However, asked about such price controls, health minister Steve Barclay told BBC TV on Sunday it was "not my understanding" that such a move would be made. Prime Minister?Rishi Sunak's No. 10 Office is in talks with supermarkets on a deal similar to one in France where major retailers charge the "lowest possible amount", the Telegraph reported on Saturday.
France?prides itself on taking its food seriously, but many consumers are now tightening their belts or skimping on quality, hit by a record?inflation?rate that threatens to serve up another political headache for the government. Eight out of 10 French consumers have adapted their?food shopping habits?in recent months, according to a May 9-10 survey by pollsters Elabe. Some 55% said they had stopped buying certain products altogether and 44% had switched to cheaper products, cutting back particularly on meat and fish. Food prices?spiked after producers and retailers, in annual negotiations, agreed in March to an average 10% increase in prices, responding to a surge in input prices and wages after Russia's February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
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Sales of own-label products at British supermarkets have grown at double the speed of branded goods in 2023, data from market researchers NIQ has shown, as customers adjust to soaring prices.Food prices are up more than 19% over the last year, outpacing the broader inflation rate across the whole economy and adding strain to household budgets already stretched by high energy bills and other price increases. The latest data showed value sales of own-label goods grew by 14.1% compared to branded product growth of 7.1%. In the last four weeks, the volume share of own-label sales rose to 63.3% in the fast-moving consumer goods' category, versus 62.1% in 2022.
German discount retailer?Penny?has?announced?it is creating its own overarching regional brand, 'Marktliebe Regional', to underpin its commitment to locally-sourced fruit and vegetables. The REWE Group-owned banner currently offers up to 200 types of?fruit and vegetables?in its range, around half of which is sourced from conventional and organic production in?Germany. The retailer now plans to further expand the proportion of regional products it sources across a variety of product areas, it said in a statement.
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