Schwarz Group gets conditional permit to take over Romanian retailer La Cocos

German retailer Schwarz, which already operates its chains Lidl and Kaufland in Romania, received from the local competition body (Consiliul Concurentei) a conditional permit to take over the majority stake in Romanian retailer La Cocos, according to a press release issued by the Competition Council.

The new owner will have to preserve the business model developed by La Cocos, including the pricing policy (commercial markups, progressive volume discounts) and, to a large extent, the suppliers. Furthermore, the investors have committed to developing La Cocos chain independently from its other chains, Lidl and Kaufland.