LIFE CORPORATION announced a tender offer for Hokuriku-based food supermarket operator ALBIS. While it aims to generate approximately ¥980 billion in sales by making ALBIS a consolidated subsidiary, the two companies' store networks barely overlap.
On 8 September, LIFE CORPORATION announced that it would launch a tender offer for ALBIS, a food supermarket operator based in Hokuriku. LIFE CORPORATION plans to make ALBIS a consolidated subsidiary, which would be its first acquisition of a supermarket operator in the same industry.
While LIFE CORPORATION's core trading areas are the Tokyo metropolitan area and the Kinki region, ALBIS is based in Hokuriku, centered on Toyama Prefecture, and has already expanded into Aichi and Gifu prefectures. The acquisition is expected to bring the two companies' combined sales to approximately ¥980 billion on a simple-addition basis.
The two companies' store networks barely overlap. Previous store openings and M&A were based primarily on the idea of expanding into adjacent areas, but the strategy is now shifting toward bringing strong companies into the group. The integration of businesses in geographically separated areas is attracting attention as a new growth pattern.
The move suggests a change in the "dominant" strategy and may potentially generate benefits including integrated logistics and procurement and improved advertising efficiency.