Jan. 17 - After having reviewed various strategic options, METRO Group has decided to focus its food retailing further. With effect of 1 July 2008, REWE Group will take over 245 Extra supermarkets. It has been agreed not to disclose the consideration.
- 245 stores with sales revenue of €1.6bn sold
- Net debt reduced by around €350m
- Clear focus on hypermarkets
"The sale of Extra enables us to concentrate our food retailing operations solely on Real and thereby focus more effectively our resources on the further successful re-positioning in Germany", said Dr. Eckhard Cordes, CEO of METRO Group.
In 2007 Extra employed around 9,700 employees and generated sales of c.€1.6bn on a sales area of more than 400,000sqm. All employees at the stores and the regional sales offices concerned are to be taken on by REWE Group. In METRO Group’s 2007 and 2008 financial statements Extra’s activities will be disclosed as discontinuing operations.
With this sale, METRO Group will reduce its balance-sheet net debt by around €350m. The rating-relevant net debt will even decrease by more than €670m.
The transaction is subject to the approval of the competent boards and the anti-trust authorities.
METRO Group is one of the most important international retailing companies. In 2007 the group reached sales of about € 66 billion. The company has a headcount of some 290.000 employees and operates over 2,400 outlets in 31 countries. The operating business is performed by the sales brands which operate independently in the market: Metro/Makro Cash & Carry – world market leader in cash & carry wholesale, Real hypermarkets, Media Markt and Saturn – market leader in consumer electronics centers in Europe, and Galeria Kaufhof department stores.