Africa’s largest retailer business, Shoprite, has sold its Nigerian operations to Ketron Investment Limited, a Nigerian company owned by a group of local investors led by property firm, Persianas Investment.
According to a statement sighted by Financial Street on Wednesday, the Chairman of Ketron Investment Limited, Tayo Amusan, was quoted as saying that Shoprite is changing its strategy from an ownership model to a franchise model.
“We look forward to building an even stronger company following our acquisition and are excited about the greater impact we will achieve to the benefit of our customers and other stakeholders now and well into the future,” he said.
With the acquisition approved by Nigeria’s Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, Amusan hinted that Ketron plans to open new Shoprite outlets and display more Nigerian-made products, to create fundamental change for the better within Nigeria.
Shoprite Nigeria’s supply chain has over 300 leading Nigerian suppliers and boasts small businesses and farmers among its partners and suppliers.
According to Ketron, Shoprite International will continue as technical adviser as it sustains the relationships established in Nigeria by Shoprite over the last 16 years, while ensuring a smooth “transfer of values.”
Shoprite Holdings is Africa’s largest food retailer, operating 2,843 supermarkets in 15 countries and serving 35 million customers in Africa and the Indian Ocean Islands.
