European retail giant Carrefour is to acquire the French organic retail chain Bio c ‘Bon – the country’s third biggest specialist organic retailer after Biocoop and Naturalia – for €60 million.
The deal was given a green light by the Paris Commercial Court after Bio c ‘Bon, faced with with bankruptcy, sought bids for the company which operates 115 stores in Europe and Japan.
Carrefour says that the deal aims to protect the jobs of nearly all Bio c‘Bon’s 1,000 employees.
The company said: “This acquisition will enable Carrefour to accelerate the development of its presence in specialised organic distribution in urban centres, a rapidly growing sector, with a concept very complementary to the Group’s existing brands.”
The Bio c’ Bon business is to be folded into Carrefour’s specialised organic division, which includes the so.bio retail brand (23 stores) and smaller BioAzur (5 stores) business.
In a statement, Carrefour said is wanted to retain “Bio c’Bon’s network, name, teams and beliefs”. However, it looks as if there will be an early rebadging as Bio c ‘Bon is merged with the so.bio store portfolio – “Bio c’Bon will be the name used for organic medium-sized premium stores in urban settings, while So.bio will be used for larger suburban stores,” Carrefour added.
