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Carrefour logos on the handles of shopping trollies in Udinese, Italy, 7 November 2021. Credit: luca pbl \/ Shutterstock.com<\/p>\n
The origins of Italy\u2019s NewPrinces date back little more than 20 years but, in its two decades of existence, the food and drinks group has grown mainly through M&A and its deal-making has often attracted attention.<\/p>\n
The company\u2019s moves for, say, UK food manufacturer Symington\u2019s in 2021<\/a>, and the larger acquisition of Princes last year<\/a> caught the eye while the business\u2019 recent decision to buy a clutch of brands in Italy from Kraft Heinz<\/a> underlined its ambitions.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\tCombine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n But all of those transactions have been somewhat overshadowed by NewPrinces\u2019 surprising move to snap up Carrefour\u2019s operations in Italy<\/a>.<\/p>\n The deal, expected to close by the end of this quarter, will give NewPrinces \u2013 one of Italy\u2019s largest food manufacturers \u2013 ownership of more than 1,000 retail stores in the country.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are taking a decisive step towards vertical integration between production and distribution, strengthening our ability to create value along the entire supply chain,\u201d NewPrinces chairman \u2013 and majority shareholder \u2013 Angelo Mastrolia said last Thursday when the deal was announced. \u201cOur ambition is clear: to build a sustainable, solid and long-term model that can offer concrete benefits to customers, employees, suppliers and shareholders.\u201d <\/p>\n It\u2019s uncommon for a food manufacturer to buy a retailer and the move has startled industry watchers. \u201cNewPrinces seems to operate from a different textbook on how to do business,\u201d one experienced market watcher told Just Food.<\/p>\n While NewPrinces\u2019 move is unusual, it\u2019s not entirely unheard of. Speaking to Il Sole 24 Ore, Mastrolia looked over the border to Switzerland where Migros and Coop \u201calready control the entire process from production to distribution\u201d. As GlobalData retail analyst Neil Saunders pointed out, UK grocer Morrisons also has some vertical integration in its supply chain with manufacturing facilities.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is quite unusual for a food manufacturer to buy a supermarket, although it makes sense on some levels,\u201d Saunders says.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are certainly some opportunities for close cooperation, especially in areas like private label and distribution. However, most supermarkets have to stock a wide variety of products, so the\u00a0 scope for total integration is limited.<\/p>\n \u201cMy sense is that NewPrinces will operate the supermarket operation fairly separately from its core business, at least in financial terms. Even so, this boosts the value of the group and gives it more muscle in the food space. There is clearly an ambition here to be a bigger player in the food ecosystem.\u201d<\/p>\n Carrefour\u2019s struggles in Italy<\/p>\n NewPrinces set out a list of reasons for why it swooped for Carrefour\u2019s Italian business. They included: to \u201cgain direct access\u201d to the end consumer; to \u201coptimise synergies\u201d between production and distribution; and to develop \u201cnew omnichannel platforms\u201d to sell and deliver products. It is also planning to relaunch the GS retail banner.<\/p>\n In its statement, the company said the deal is based on an enterprise value of \u20ac1bn ($1.18bn).<\/p>\n As part of the transaction, Carrefour will reinvest \u20ac237.5m as a one-off contribution to the Italian unit changing hands \u201cto support its industrial relaunch and operational continuity\u201d, NewPrinces said.<\/p>\n The food-and-drinks manufacturer said it is committed to investing \u20ac200m \u201cin development initiatives, logistics innovation and brand renewal\u201d.<\/p>\n Carrefour\u2019s business in Italy, centred on the north of the country. NewPrinces will take on an estate of supermarkets, convenience stores and cash-and-carry outlets and the fact both parties have set out plans to invest in Carrefour\u2019s Italian operations underlines how the business has found the going challenging in recent quarters.<\/p>\n Carrefour\u2019s sales in Italy declined in 2024 and the business generated with a recurring operating loss of \u20ac67m and a negative \u201cnet free cash flow of \u20ac180m\u201d. The French retail giant said it had been doing business \u201cin a particularly challenging economic and competitive environment\u201d in Italy.<\/p>\n News of the deal came alongside the publication of Carrefour\u2019s second-quarter sales, which included a 1.6% increase in Italy on a like-for-like basis. The retailer said it \u201cstabilised its market share in volume\u201d in Italy during the quarter.<\/p>\n Nonetheless, Carrefour CEO Alexandre Bompard said the deal to sell the assets to NewPrinces \u201cillustrates our ability to refocus the group on its most contributive activities\u201d.<\/p>\n Much like another transaction NewPrinces announced this year \u2013 the acquisition of a drinks plant in Italy that Diageo had earmarked for closure<\/a> \u2013 there is the feeling among some in the sector that the move for Carrefour\u2019s stores appears to be a grab for scale for its own sake.<\/p>\n![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/www.just-food.com\/wp-content\/themes\/goodlife-wp-B2B\/assets\/img\/globaldata_marketing_solutions_logo.svg\"){kind=logo}
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