The UK retailer giant Tesco sold its Polish operations to Denmark’s Salling Group for PLN900mn (€226.82mn), Tesco said on June 18.
The transaction ends Tesco’s struggle on the demanding Polish market, where non-UK brands such France’s Auchan, Portugal’s Jeronimo Martins and Poland’s own Dino, are strong.
Poles’ shopping habits have also changed in recent years, with customers moving towards smaller, more conveniently located stores or to discounts. That proved a problem for Tesco, which relied on large hypermarkets.
Tesco operated 455 stores in 2014. That diminished to 345 last year.
“We have seen significant progress in our business in Central Europe, but continue to see market challenges in Poland. Today’s announcement allows us to focus in the region on our business in the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia, where we have stronger market positions,” Tesco’s chief executive Dave Lewis said in a statement.
The buyer, Denmark’s Salling Group, operates Netto stores in Poland.
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