Massmart to sell non-core food assets to rival Shoprite Checkers for $89m

Walmart-owned Massmart has agreed to sell its non-core food assets to rival South African retailer Shoprite Checkers for ZAR 1.360 billion ($89.2 million).

The sale includes Cambridge Food, cash and carry chain Rhino, and Massfresh, which is made up of produce wholesaler The Fruitspot, and a meat processing facility, along with a dozen Cash & Carry stores.

According to Massmart, the sale is being taken up to cut down its exposure to non-core operations while focusing its investment in high-returning trading assets.

Massmart to sell non-core food assets to rival Shoprite Checkers for $89m. Photo courtesy of Massmart.

Mitch Slape — Massmart Group CEO said: “The sale marks another step in the Group’s portfolio optimization process and will, amongst other benefits, free-up management time to enable increased focus on leveraging Massmart’s core merchandise and market strengths.”

The South African retailer will use the financial proceeds from the sale for paying down drawn bank facilities apart from investing in eCommerce and in merchandise areas.

The deal is anticipated to be wrapped up early in Q1 2022.