Zaandam, The Netherlands / Chantilly, USA, February 2, 2001 - Royal Ahold, the international food provider, today announced it has obtained the green light from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to acquire 56 supermarkets and eight sites from Grand Union. The stores and sites will be integrated into two of its U.S. operating companies, Stop & Shop and Tops.
Stop & Shop, Ahold’s prominent supermarket chain in Massachusetts, Connecticut, the greater New York metropolitan area and Rhode Island will integrate 36 stores into its operation as well as eight sites for future store development. Sister company Tops, based in New York state, will merge the other 20 stores into its portfolio.
Grand Union recently filed for bankruptcy and C&S Wholesalers led a consortium of retailers, including Ahold, to bid for the assets of the company. Final regulatory approval was granted today. Ahold will take a one-time charge for the current year of about USD 50 million to reflect the cost of converting the stores to the Stop & Shop and Tops banner. The total transaction amounts to approximately USD 178 million. The acquisition will positively impact operating earnings as of 2002.
Remarks by Bill Grize, President & CEO Ahold USA-Retail
‘We feel the acquisition of these 56 stores and eight sites provides an excellent opportunity to extend our superior shopping proposition to more consumers in our trade areas,’ said Bill Grize, President & CEO of Ahold USA-Retail. ‘The transaction enables us to do what we feel we do best - make good stores better and service our customers in the best possible way. It will boost our regional position and enhance our ability to serve a growing customer base in this market.’
Stop & Shop
Stop & Shop is among the largest supermarket chains along the eastern seaboard and operates superstores and supermarkets in five states: Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York and New Jersey. The company is headquartered in Quincy, Massachusetts and generates annualized sales exceeding USD 7 billion.
Tops Markets
Tops operates stores in three states: New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania, in addition to the Sugar Creek merchandise and fuel outlets along interstate highways. Tops generates annualized sales in excess of USD 3.2 billion.
Ahold USA: strengthening its position along U.S. eastern seaboard
Ahold operates five prominent retail operating companies along the U.S. eastern seaboard with combined sales of more than USD 22 billion. In addition, Ahold will generate projected sales from its U.S. foodservice activities approaching USD 12 billion this year, boosting sales from its U.S. operations to close to USD 34 billion through its multi-channel activities of food retail and foodservice. Ahold also has a majority stake in Peapod, the leading U.S. internet grocer.
Royal Ahold
Royal Ahold operates approximately 8,500 supermarkets, hypermarkets and other store formats in the United States, Europe, Latin America and Asia with consolidated 2000 sales of close to USD 50 billion (Euro 52.2 billion). The company also has a significant presence in the foodservice sector and is swiftly developing its position in internet-based home delivery. Ahold employs almost 420,000 associates and serves the food needs of over 35 million customers and more than 200,000 foodservice accounts in 25 countries every week. Ahold’s website can be found at www.ahold.com.