The break-up of Real continues. Kaufland secures numerous other Real locations for its branch network. The competition watchdogs have no concerns.
The Federal Cartel Office has given the large-scale discounter Kaufland the green light to take over 22 more Real branches.
As a result of the takeover, “no significant hindrance to effective competition in the affected market areas” is to be expected, the competition authority announced on Friday in Bonn. In December, Kaufland had already received permission from the competition authorities to take over up to 92 Real stores. Like Lidl, Kaufland belongs to the Schwarz Group. First, the “Lebensmittel Zeitung” reported on the decision of the Cartel Office.
The Russian financial investor SCP took over the 270 Real branches from Metro last year in order to break up the retail chain and sell it on. The break-up is considered to be the last big chance for the established German retail chains to once again vigorously expand their branch network. After all, Real had made a turnover of around 7 billion euros before the break-up.
Germany’s largest grocer, Edeka, received approval to take over up to 51 Real branches in the spring. The Globus supermarket chain received approval for the acquisition of up to 24 Real stores. Some smaller chains also took the opportunity to expand.
The background: Takeovers in the food trade have been carefully scrutinized by the competition watchdogs for years. Because the food trade in Germany is already highly concentrated today. The market share of the “big four” – Edeka, Rewe, Aldi and the Schwarz Group with Lidl and Kaufland – is now more than 85 percent, according to the Cartel Office. The undisputed market leader is Edeka with around 11,200 grocery stores and sales of over 55 billion euros.
When Real is broken up, the competition watchdogs are concerned not only that consumers may lack shopping alternatives in their region. The cartel guards are also concerned about the purchasing power of the trading giants vis-à-vis their suppliers. Traditionally, the price negotiations between retailers and food manufacturers are fought with tough conditions.
In order to receive the green light from the competition authority despite the fundamental concerns of the cartel watchdogs, SCP has committed to sell a number of Real locations to medium-sized grocery retailers. So that alternative sales channels are retained for the manufacturers.
The latest approval from the Bundeskartellamt for Kaufland affects the Real branches Alzey, Balingen, Düsseldorf-Heerdt, Erfurt TEC Flensburg, Gelsenkirchen-Buer, Gießen, Grevenbroich, Halle-Neustadt, Heiligenroth, Homburg, Jülich, Mülheim an der Ruhr, Nuremberg Mercado, Ratingen-Breitscheid, Rendsburg, Saarbrücken Saarbasar, Schleswig, Weilheim, Wesel, Wiesbaden Äppelallee-Center and Wuppertal-Langerfeld.
Jane Stock is a technology author, who has written for 24 Hours World. She writes about the latest in technology news and trends, and is always on the lookout for new and innovative ways to improve his audience’s experience.
