Ahold Delhaize expands footprint in Romania with EUR 1.3 bln acquisition of grocery retailer Profi

Dutch-Belgian group Ahold Delhaize, which owns the Mega Image supermarket chain in Romania, said on October 30 that it agreed to acquire Romanian grocery retailer Profi Rom Food SRL (Profi) from MidEuropa. The company will pay an enterprise value of approximately EUR 1.3 billion, corresponding to a lease-adjusted enterprise value of EUR 1.8 billion.

The deal, subject to approval from the regulatory authorities, will more than double the size of Ahold Delhaize’s existing Romanian business, which operates under the Mega Image brand and has 969 stores, predominantly in urban areas. Closing is expected in 2024.

Frans Muller, Ahold Delhaize’s Chief Executive Officer, said: “I am very excited to welcome Profi into the Ahold Delhaize family. We have followed the company’s trajectory for a while now and admire what the Profi team has been able to achieve.”

MidEuropa said the sale of Profi to Ahold Delhaize marks the largest grocery deal ever in continental Europe involving private equity. Furthermore, the deal makes regional history as the largest grocery deal ever in Central and Eastern Europe.

Robert Knorr, Managing Partner at MidEuropa, commented: “The sale of Profi is our second EUR 1 billion plus exit in the retail sector in Central Europe, following our success with Zabka, where we built a Polish convenience champion. […] The sale of Profi is also a very important exit for the Central European region, which continues to be home to some of the most compelling growth companies in Europe.”

Profi is a leading traditional grocery retailer in Romania, operating 1,654 stores nationwide. In the twelve months ending June 2023, the company generated EUR 2.5 billion in sales.

Ahold Delhaize is one of the world’s largest food retail groups. Its family of local brands serves 60 million customers each week, both in stores and online, in the United States, Europe, and Indonesia. In Romania, Ahold Delhaize operates a nationwide network of 969 stores under the Mega Image brand.

(Photo source: Profi)