Lotte and Shinsegae Face Off Again in the Battle to Acquire Ministop

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] Lotte and Shinsegae are expected to face off again in the acquisition battle for Korea Ministop, which has been put up for sale.

According to industry sources on the 6th, the recent final bid for the sale of Korea Ministop saw participation from a consortium of Shinsegae Group, private equity firm Anchor Private Equity, and food distribution company Nepstone Holdings. Additionally, Lotte Group, which did not participate in the preliminary bid, has reportedly expressed its intention to join the final bid.

Seven Eleven and Emart24 are aiming to expand their number of stores through the acquisition of Korea Ministop. In the convenience store industry, the number of stores is a key indicator directly linked to economies of scale and sales. Currently, both companies are facing difficulties in business expansion due to voluntary regulations limiting new convenience store openings.

As of 2020, Korea Ministop operates 2,603 stores. If Seven Eleven acquires it, they will secure about 14,000 stores, allowing them to closely chase CU and GS25, who compete for first and second place in the industry. If Emart24 acquires it, the number of stores will increase to about 8,000, narrowing the gap with Seven Eleven, which holds third place in the industry.

Previously, Korea Ministop proceeded to the final bid in 2018, but the sale process was halted due to disagreements over the sale price. At that time, Lotte and Shinsegae also participated in the acquisition battle, but the Aeon Group completely canceled the sale citing the price was too low. The sale price at that time was about 400 billion KRW, but it is now estimated to have dropped to around 200 billion KRW, nearly half. Korea Ministop recorded sales of 1.0794 trillion KRW and an operating loss of 14.3 billion KRW in the last fiscal year (March 2020 to February 2021).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.