Co-op secures £83m Sainsbury’s deal

SAINSBURY’S has spent £83m acquiring 24 stores from the Co-operative Group.

The supermarket said it planned to spend a further £45m re-fitting the shops.

The competition authorities agreed to Co-op’s £1.5bn acquisition of Somerfield last year on the condition it sold more than 130 stores.

Some 22 of the stores bought by Sainsbury’s were Somerfield outlets while two were operated by the Co-op. Thirteen of the shops were freehold and Sainsbury’s said it had funded the deal with its cash resources.

In a statement Justin King, Sainsbury’s chief executive, said: “We are delighted to acquire these stores which are an excellent addition to our store estate and we are pleased to welcome 1,400 new colleagues to Sainsbury’s.”

Sainsbury’s said the stores will be open by October. Around 19 stores will form part of the supermarket estate, adding 216,000 sq ft of additional selling space, with five stores becoming Sainsbury’s Locals, adding 20,000 sq ft

Co-op’s acquisition of Somerfield created a fifth player in the grocery sector with 8% market share and 3,000 stores generating annual sales of more than £7bn.