Pending approval from regulating authorities, Walmart announced Thursday the purchase Perimercados, Super Compro and Saretto stores from Grupo Empresarial de Supermercados (Gessa).
Once authorization is received from the Comisión para la Promoción de la Competencia (Coprocom) – Commission for the Promotion of Competition of the Ministry of Economy, Industry and Commerce (MEIC), the retail chain will begin an integration process so that the 52 points of sale (POS) acquired under its standards and brands in the country.
More than 1,300 employees of the acquired stores will join the Walmart team in Costa Rica.
“The combined operation of the Walmart and Gessa stores generates an excellent complementarity to serve increasingly the Costa Rican market. In this way, Walmart promotes its growth plans in the region, and the current stores and collaborators of Gessa will be able to offer increasing value to its customers,” said Cristian Barrientos, senior vice president and general manager of Walmart Centroamérica.
Barrientos added that the transaction will represent an opportunity for the suppliers of both companies to continue developing their commercial activity, and potentially, can extend it to more establishments countrywide.
“We are very optimistic about the social value that we will be able to share thanks to this business, because customers will have greater possibilities to save on their purchases, more associates will have the opportunity to develop in a growing organization and, especially, we will give greater possibilities for business to our suppliers,” added the senior vice president.
The purchase is part of Walmart’s announced plans in mid-2017 to double its operations in Costa Rica within five years.
In Costa Rica, Walmart of Mexico and Central America owns the Walmart, Masxmenos, Maxipalí and Palí stores. The new acquisitions adds Perimercados, Super Compro and Saretto to its retail outlets.
According to a report by Bloomberg last month, Walmart’s Killing It in Central America. Bloomberg reported Walmart’s business in Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Costa Rica is a growing part of the retailer’s publicly traded Mexican and Central American business, Wal-Mart de Mexico SAB, or Walmex. The region now accounts for almost one-fifth of Walmex’s revenue, up from 14% in 2014.
The retailer’s sales in Central America more than doubled to US$5.2 billion) in 2017.
In 2017, Walmart reported revenues of $5.7 billion in the Central American region. Internationally, the company suffered at the beginning of 2018, reporting a 27.7% fall in its net profit. The reduction was a consequence of the burdens linked to the US tax reform.
