(New York) Low-cost retailer Aldi announced Wednesday that it has reached a “definitive agreement” with Southeastern Grocers to acquire nearly 400 stores in the southeastern United States, and plans to add more. 120 across the country this year.
The affected stores carry the Winn-Dixie and Harveys Supermarket brands.
“The time was right to continue building on our growth momentum and to help people in the southeast save on their supermarket till bills,” Aldi boss Jason Hart said in a statement.
This transaction “supports our long-term growth strategy in the United States, including the addition of 120 stores nationwide this year to reach a total of over 2,400 stores by year-end.” , he added.
The amount of the transaction, which should be finalized in the first half of 2024 after obtaining regulatory approvals, has not been specified.
“This merger agreement is the legacy of our successful transformation,” Anthony Hucker, CEO of Southeastern Grocers, said in the statement.
Aldi says it first set foot in the southeastern United States in the mid-1990s and has since invested $2.5 billion there. He plans to open around twenty stores under his own name by the end of the year.
Of the 400 supermarkets it plans to absorb – 299 of which are in Florida – an as-yet-undetermined number will switch to Aldi, the group said.
Besides Florida, these coveted stores are in Alabama (39), Georgia (25), Louisiana (28) and Mississippi (6).
This proposed acquisition “represents yet another example of the consolidation of supermarkets in the United States, at a time when margins and sales are under increasing pressure”, commented Neil Saunders, director of GlobalData, calling it “unusual” for Aldi, which generally prefers organic growth to external growth.
According to him, this transaction comes as a “relief” for Southeastern Grocers “which has struggled to compete for many years.”
“Under the Aldi umbrella, these stores are going to have access to more finance and a ruthlessly efficient supply chain that will drive down costs,” he added.
The Aldi maxi-discount group, of German origin, is present in several countries of the European Union, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, China and Australia, according to its site.