Delhaize 'Le Lion' Group (Belgium), The Mall Group (Thailand) and Saha Group (Thailand) have signed an agreement to become shareholders (with a stake of respectively 45%, 45% and 10%) of a newly formed company 'Bel-Thai Supermarket Co. Ltd.' of which the total registered capital will be THB one billion (USD 40 million), and to develop, a large supermarket chain in Thailand.
Bel-Thai Supermarket Co. Ltd., under the 'Food Lion' banner, will start its operations by integrating one stand-alone supermarket operated today by The Mall. Two additional sites are already under development. These first three sites are located in Bangkok.
Thailand is a country that counts more than 60 million inhabitants of which about 10 million in Bangkok. The country has been developing very quickly with Gross Domestic Product ('GDP') growth reaching an annual average of 8% over the past decade . Thanks to this rapid growth, purchasing power has increased dramatically as well as the number of potential customers.
Following this agreement, besides its initial investment of THB 135 million (about 5.4 million USD), Delhaize 'Le Lion' shall contribute its know-how and expertise of merchandising strategy, information technology, accounting systems, general operations of stores including logistics. The contribution of The Mall and Saha groups will be the local knowledge of food retail operation like buying, advertising, human resources and the advising on real estate operation to secure sites for the stores development.
Delhaize 'Le Lion' strategy is to concentrate on its core business, food retailing, to develop the group through alliances with local partners and to favor the long term growth. The agreement with The Mall and Saha groups fully fits with this strategy. Besides its expansion in Europe and North-America, Delhaize 'Le Lion' Group was seeking to enter into a third pole of development in the fast growing Asian Pacific Region.
The Belgian retail group, Delhaize 'Le Lion', has more than 1,700 sales outlets in 5 countries, Belgium, France, Greece, the Czech Republic and the United States where its largest affiliated company 'Food Lion', operates 1,200 supermarkets. In 1996 the consolidated Delhaize 'Le Lion' turnover achieved a record of USD 13.3 billion. Over 100,000 staff members in the United States and in Europe contribute to the success of the Group's 14 trade names.
The Mall Group is Thailand's leading operator of shopping centers and number two as operator of department stores in Thailand. The group has developed the concept of all-in-one shopping and entertainment complexes in their 7 Malls. About 7,000 staff members contributed to achieve a turnover of about USD 580 million in 1996.
Saha Group is a conglomerate having developed and diversified business in Thailand for more than 50 years. Its products include detergent, personal care, apparel, cosmetics and food. The 300 companies employ over 60,000 people and manufactured over 300 products items. Saha Group has an estimated turnover of USD 3 billion in 1996.
June 23, 1997