ICA AB sells ICA Meny to Nordic Capital
ICA AB sells ICA Meny to Nordic Capital
Solna: June 16, 2006
In February, ICA AB announced that its subsidiary, ICA Meny, was for sale. Now an agreement has been reached on the sale of ICA Meny to Nordic Capital.
ICA Meny is a leading supplier to restaurants, foodservice sector, and convenience stores in Sweden and Norway. Net sales in Sweden and Norway together amounted to SEK 5,778 million in 2005, an increase of 15 percent compared to the previous year. The company increased operating income to SEK 11 million (SEK -53 million, 2004).
The sale results in a capital gain for ICA AB of approximately SEK 360 million. Both parties are awaiting the approval of the European Commission before the deal can be finalized.
- For ICA it was either a matter of concentrating heavily on the restaurant and foodservice sector or selling ICA Meny. The sale of ICA Meny will allow us to focus even more on our core business, retail. At the same time, ICA Meny gains a professional owner in Nordic Capital that will be able to make a significant contribution to the continued positive growth of the company, says Kenneth Bengtsson, President and CEO, ICA AB.
- Nordic Capital is excited about the opportunity to acquire ICA Meny and to work with the management team to further develop and expand the business. As a stand-alone company, ICA Meny has the opportunity to further strengthen its market position in a fragmented industry and to achieve continued growth by improving its service offering, says Peter Hansson, Partner, Nordic Capital.
ICA ABs Financial Advisor has been Catella Retail.
For further information, please contact: Kenneth Bengtsson, President and CEO, ICA AB, tel +46 8 561 502 58 Peter Hansson, Partner, Nordic Capital, tel +46 8 440 50 50 ICAs press hotline, tel +46 70 253 66 60
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About ICA The ICA Group is one of the Nordic regions leading retail companies, with around 2,300 of its own and retailer-owned stores in Sweden and Norway. The Group includes the sales companies ICA Sverige, ICA Norge and Etos. ICA Meny specializes in distribution to restaurants, the foodservice sector and convenience stores. ICA also offers financial services to Swedish customers through ICA Banken. ICA owns half of the companies Rimi Baltic, with just over 170 stores in the Baltic countries, and Netto Marknad, with just over 70 stores in Sweden. ICA AB is a joint venture 40% owned by Hakon Invest AB and 60% by Royal Ahold of the Netherlands. Due to shareholder agreement, neither party has control of the company and both share equal voting power. Through Royal Ahold, ICA AB is part of an international retail network. For more information, please visit http://www.ica.se