Asda expands with purchase of Netto’s UK stores

Supermarket giant Asda has today announced it is to buy the 193 UK stores from Danish discount retailer Netto, in a deal worth £778 million.

Netto, currently owned by Dansk Supermarked, has operated in the UK since 1990. The company said it now plans to concentrate on expanding in Scandinavia and Northern Europe.

Meanwhile, Asda said that it hopes to complete the deal later in the summer, pending regulatory approval from the Office of Fair Trading.

Asda said the deal will help it expand its smaller store formats, as well as its non-food Asda Living chain.

Asda chief executive Andy Clarke said: “Customers will benefit from low prices on a significantly broader range of quality products, complemented by the wide range of services we offer in all our smaller stores.”

Meanwhile, chief executive of Dansk Supermarked, Erling Jensen, said: “We have substantial opportunities for growth in Scandinavia and Northern Europe and believe that the time has come to focus our efforts on the development of our business in these countries.”

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