The Co-op has announced the appointment of Ken Towle as Chief Executive of its newly acquired Nisa subsidiary.  The former senior Tesco executive has taken up the role with immediate effect, replacing Arnu Misra who stepped in as interim Nisa CEO in late 2017.  The announcement comes on the day that the Co-op's acquisition of the wholesale distributor gained final legal recognition.

Ken Towle offers experience of long Tesco career

Having moved through levels of management both in Tesco stores and head office, Ken Towle also held leading roles in Tesco's international markets, including China, Central Europe, Ireland and Turkey.  On leaving Tesco in 2015, he then spent two years as a senior advisor with The Boston Consulting Group, and was most recently with the international franchise retailer MH Alshaya.

Jo Whitfield, Co-op Retail CEO, commenting on the acquisition of Nisa said:

"This is exciting news.  Co-op and Nisa have all the ingredients for a successful partnership, which will include the offer of award-winning Co-op own brand products.  It will give Nisa partners a wholesale operation of scale, allowing them to trade their businesses in the way they choose, whilst benefiting from competitive prices and promotions on an industry-leading own brand."

 

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CMA gives go-ahead for Co-op Nisa deal
The Competition and Markets Authority has cleared the Co-op’s £137.5m takeover of buying group Nisa, saying "the proposed merger does not give rise to competition concerns”.

UK competition regulator launches Co-op/Nisa enquiry
The UK Competition and Markets Authority has now begun its preliminary investigation into the potential effects of the proposed acquisition of wholesaler/distributor Nisa by the Co-operative Group.

Nisa Retail Q4 shows benefit of P&H demise
Wholesale distributor, Nisa Retail, has announced trading figures for Q4 of its 2017/18 year (13 weeks to 1 April), reporting total sales for the period up 26.1% to £377m.

The Competition and Markets Authority has cleared the Co-op’s £137.5m takeover of buying group Nisa, saying "the proposed merger does not give rise to competition concerns”.  Co-op is now likely to take over the running of Nisa in May.

Competition between shops unaffected

Co-op, as a groceries retailer, and Nisa, as a groceries wholesaler, do not compete head-to-head. However, as Nisa supplies more than 4,000 grocery stores, the CMA said it had carefully considered the potential impact of the merger on competition between shops.

As part of the “phase 1” investigation, the CMA took into account that Nisa-supplied stores would still be free to set their own prices and decide which products to stock after the merger.  It concluded that the merged company would not be able to directly determine how they compete.

Stores and shoppers free to shop around

It also examined whether the merged company could raise prices or reduce service quality for retail or wholesale customers but found that existing retail and wholesale competition made this unlikely.  As Nisa-supplied stores are able to choose between several different wholesalers, they would be able to switch supplier if prices were to increase or the quality of service go down as a result of the merger.

As far as shoppers are concerned, the CMA felt there were enough local alternatives to both Co-op and Nisa-supplied stores to ensure that people could still shop around to get the best value.

In conclusion, it said that this all meant that the merged company would be unlikely to be able to raise prices or offer a worse service to either stores or to shoppers.

Co-op expects to start running Nisa in May

The decision not to send the deal to a ‘phase 2’ investigation means that the Co-op now expects to take over the running of Nisa in early May.

Sheldon Mills, senior director of mergers at the CMA, said: “Millions of people throughout the UK shop at convenience stores and supermarkets, and it is vital that they continue to have enough choice to get the best value for them. After careful consideration, we’ve found that there is sufficient competition in both the wholesale and retail sectors to ensure that shoppers are not worse off.”

Co-op Retail CEO Jo Whitfield commented: “We’re delighted with the CMA decision and are really excited about sharing our plans for the future once we gain court sanction.”

Peter Hartley, chairman of Nisa, added: “Today’s ruling by the CMA is excellent news, and a significant step towards finalising the transaction that our members voted for last November. We are very excited about our future together which will help ensure that our members are best placed to serve their communities.”

IGD Convenience Retailing Summit 2018

26-27 September, London

Check out the evolving speaker line-up and book early bird tickets.

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Co-op reports profit increase of 25% FY17
The Co-op has reported strong trading results for the year 2017.

Nisa Retail Q4 shows benefit of P&H demise
Wholesale distributor, Nisa Retail, has announced trading figures for Q4 of its 2017/18 year (13 weeks to 1 April), reporting total sales for the period up 26.1% to £377m.

Tesco completes merger with Booker
Tesco and Booker have confirmed that their merger has become effective as of 8am on 5 March 2018, following court approval.

Wholesale distributor, Nisa Retail, has announced trading figures for Q4 of its 2017/18 year (13 weeks to 1 April), reporting total sales for the period up 26.1% to £377m.  However, underlying growth was weaker, down 1.1%.  This is perhaps the last quarter that Nisa will report as an independent business, with its acquisition by Co-op expected to complete during Q2, following the Competition & Markets Authority inquiry now in train. 

Growth driven by customer gains from P&H

Nisa's performance was fundamentally enabled by a rapid increase in the number of the stores being serviced in the quarter, with 1,115 stores added in the course of the three months.  The substantial majority of these, 1,039 (including a significant number of Costcutter stores), were stores formerly serviced by competitor Palmer & Harvey, which fell into administration in November 2017.  The total number of stores within the Nisa supply network now stands at 4,797, up from 3,466 in 2016/17.

Costcutter stores serviced expected to increase, though offset by McColl's departure

The agreed supply deal between Co-op and Costcutter ensures that going forward all Costcutter stores will be serviced through Nisa, once that deal is formally activated.  However, as Nisa on-boards more Costcutter stores, McColl's stores will be dropping out of supply, as they progressively shift into that retailer's contract with Morrisons.  To date, it is understood that 264 McColl's stores have switched into Morrisons supply.

Arnu Misra, interim Chief Executive, Nisa Retail commented:

'Following a very strong Christmas period, our sales and recruitment numbers have continued to perform strongly, giving Nisa positive momentum as we enter our new financial year.  I am also pleased to report that during a quarter of increased store growth, we were able to generate cash without significantly impacting service to our existing members.'

 

IGD Convenience Retailing Summit 2018

 

26-27 September, London

 

Check out the evolving speaker line-up and book early bird tickets.

Find out more »

UK competition regulator launches Co-op/Nisa enquiry
The UK Competition and Markets Authority has now begun its preliminary investigation into the potential effects of the proposed acquisition of wholesaler/distributor Nisa by the Co-operative Group.

Co-op reports profit increase of 25% FY17
The Co-op has reported strong trading results for the year 2017.

Tesco completes merger with Booker
Tesco and Booker have confirmed that their merger has become effective as of 8am on 5 March 2018, following court approval.