Reliance Retail acquires METRO India

The transaction is subject to certain regulatory and other customary closing conditions and is expected to complete by Mar 2023, a statement from the company said.

The acquisition will further strengthen Reliance Retail’s physical store footprint and ability to better serve consumers and small merchants by leveraging synergies and efficiencies across supply chain networks, technology platforms and sourcing capabilities, the statement said.

Isha Ambani, Director, Reliance Retail Ventures Limited, said, "The acquisition of METRO India aligns with our new commerce strategy of building a unique model of shared prosperity through active collaboration with small merchants and enterprises. METRO India is a pioneer and key player in the Indian B2B market and has built a solid multi-channel platform delivering strong customer experience.

"We believe that METRO India’s healthy assets combined with our deep understanding of the Indian merchant / kirana ecosystem will help offer a differentiated value proposition to small businesses in India."

Dr Steffen Greubel, CEO of METRO AG, said, "With METRO India, we are selling a growing and profitable wholesale business in a very dynamic market at the right time. We are convinced that in Reliance we have found a suitable partner who is willing and able to successfully lead METRO India into the future in this market environment.

"This on one hand will benefit both our customers and our employees, for whose loyalty and performance we are very grateful, and on the other hand will enable METRO to focus on accelerating growth in the remaining country portfolio."