Consumers shop at a Saigon Co.op supermarket (Photo: VNA) HCM City (VNA) – The Saigon Unionof Trading Co-operatives (Saigon Co.op) will take over 18 stores and entiree-commerce retail system of France’s Auchan Retail in Vietnam under a merger andacquisition deal reached between two sides on late June 27.
As for the three operating supermarkets, Saigon Co.op will maintain Auchanbrand until February 2020, while the 15 supermarkets in Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoiand Tay Ninh, which were closed, will be renovated and put into operation underSaigon Co.op brands of Co.opmart, Co.opXtra and Finelife.
Besides, Saigon Co.op will work to ensurerights of Auchan’s customers.
Saigon Co.op and Auchan also discussedvarious cooperation prospects like imports, exports, and many other businessopportunities.
According to Deputy General Director of Saigon Co.op Nguyen Anh Duc, thetakeover of Auchan is a vivid illustration for Saigon Co.op’s strengths inmodern commerce, and responsibility to Vietnamese consumers.
Meanwhile, Director of Auchan Retail Vietnam Philippe Courbois said that thecontract with Saigon Co.op is expected to lay a foundation for both sides tocollaborate in other sectors in the time ahead.
The French group entered Vietnam in 2015 and had developed a total of 21 storesin the nation. Following the closure of three outlets, Auchan continued to shutdown 15 loss-making stores in mid-May, preparing for its plan to exit the Vietnamesemarket. The remaining three marts are being operated in Ho Chi Minh City.
The whole 18 Auchan outlets generated 45 million euros (50.4 million USD) inrevenue in 2018, yet they still suffered losses.
Auchan used 1,000 workers, and had 10 billion customers.-VNA
VNA
