Carrefour is poised to make a significant acquisition in France, reportedly agreeing to pay €155 million for Codifrance, a wholesaler that supplies stores including Coccinelle and Coccimarket, which operate under the Biedronka brand in France.
According to the French business publication “La Lettre”, Carrefour is close to finalizing the acquisition of Codifrance, a subsidiary of the Belgian Colruyt Group.
Codifrance serves a network of approximately 3,000 smaller neighborhood stores, with around 700 operating under brands such as Coccinelle, Coccimarket (the French counterpart of Biedronka), Panier Sympa, VivÉco, and Épi Service. The acquisition would also include 500 employees and two logistics facilities.
It is important to note that the Coccinelle and Coccimarket stores in France are unrelated to the Polish Biedronka, which is owned by Portuguese company Jeronimo Martins.
Codifrance, the sole French division of the Colruyt Group, generates annual revenues of €310 million.
As reported by “La Lettre”, this acquisition is part of Carrefour’s strategy to strengthen its position in the local grocery store segment. Intermarché had also shown interest in Codifrance, but Carrefour’s offer was deemed more advantageous.
Additionally, this transaction would help Carrefour prevent its own franchisees from sourcing cheaper products from external suppliers like Codifrance, a common practice in the industry. Official confirmation of the acquisition has yet to be made.
