Auchan acquires 235 Spanish supermarkets

Alcampo, the Spanish subsidiary of Auchan, has acquired 235 supermarkets and a warehouse from DIA. As the latter wants to become a corner shop concept, it is divesting a lot of stores that do not fit into the new format.

180,000 sqm of retail space

Auchan Retail has made a major acquisition in Spain: it has bought 235 shops with an average size of 760 sqm in the regions Aragon, Asturias, the Basque Country, Cantabria, Castile and Leon, Galicia, Madrid and Navarra (basically, almost all of Northern Spain), totalling 180,000 square metres of retail space. The chain also acquires a warehouse in Valladolid.

The seller, DIA group, wants to focus entirely on smaller shops and wants to reinvest the money from the sale in its new retail model. In this way, the chain hopes to accelerate its turnaround. The sold shops no longer fitted in the current strategy, says DIA in a press statement.

Alcampo aims for leading position

“With this operation, Auchan Retail significantly strengthens its presence in a country of strategic importance for our brand. It complements our multi-format network, with the ambition of accelerating our growth in Spain to become the leader in phygital food retailing and thus the brand of choice for people in Spain”, says CEO Yves Claude of Auchan Retail.

The transaction is, however, still awaiting approval from the Spanish market authority. The shops may be transferred to Alcampo in blocks, since neither DIA nor Auchan seem to expect that the competition watchdog will give its blessing to all supermarkets in one go. The final acquisition price has therefore not yet been determined either: that will depend on how many stores are eventually given the green light.