EG Group—which as EG America operates the Cumberland Farms and other convenience-store brands in the United States—has completed the sale of the majority of its fuel, foodservice, grocery and merchandise business in the United Kingdom and Ireland to U.K. supermarket chain Asda for $2.5 billion. It said the deal, announced in May, is a transformational step that strengthens its platform to further invest in its “proven and successful” strategy to rollout foodservice, grocery and merchandise to create multi-purpose convenience retail sites around the world.
“The sale … represents an important strategic step for the company, enabling EG to support the continued rollout of its successful convenience retail, fuel and foodservice strategy and drive innovation to transform the consumer experience,” said Zuber Issa, co-CEO and co-founder of EG Group. “This includes the ongoing investment and expansion of the EV charging business, evpoint, as well as hydrogen and other sustainable fuel retail infrastructure, which we continue to see as a significant future opportunity.”
The company will continue to operate in the United States, Australia, Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Belgium, as well as 32 sites in the United Kingdom. Under the terms of the transaction, the company will also retain certain foodservice brands including Cooplands, its wholly owned bakery business, as well as franchise businesses with the Starbucks, KFC, Sbarro, Chaiiwala and Cinnabon brands.
The company will use the $2.5 billion, together with the net proceeds of $1.4 billion from the recent sale-leaseback transaction in the United States and the $43 million net proceeds from non-core U.S. asset disposal, to repay debt, enabling EG Group to significantly reduce net leverage, in line with the previously announced financial policy and deleveraging strategy.
EG Group will remain a leading global convenience retailer, generating more than $25 billion of annual revenue and more than $1 billion of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) across 5,500 locations.
Founded in 2001 as EuroGarages by co-CEOs Moshin and Zuber Issa, Blackburn, U.K.-based EG Group is a c-store operator and fuel retailer with more than 6,200 sites across the United Kingdom and Ireland, Europe, the United States and Australia. In 2021, the Issas and London-based TDR Capital acquired Asda, Walmart’s U.K. supermarket business.
- EG America is No. 5 on CSP’s 2023 Top 202 ranking of c-store chains by number of company-owned retail outlets.
EG Group established itself in the United States in 2018 as EG America by acquiring Kroger’s 762-site c-store network. It acquired TravelCenters of America’s Minit Mart c-store business for approximately $330.8 million in 2018. The portfolio included 225 c-stores. And in 2019, among other acquisitions, EG Group acquired Cumberland Farms and its nearly 660 c-stores in the Northeast and Florida, and EG America now has its headquarters in Westborough, Mass. With more than 1,750 sites across 33 states, U.S. c-store brands include Cumberland Farms, Certified Oil, Fastrac, Kwik Shop, Loaf N’ Jug, Minit Mart, Quik Stop, Sprint Food Stores, Tom Thumb and Turkey Hill.
Asda will roll out its new convenience brand, Asda Express, at 356 of the acquired sites. This transaction builds on its acquisition of 119 convenience sites with fuel from the Co-op Group, which started to convert to the Asda Express fascia earlier this month, and the successful launch of three standalone Asda Express convenience sites since October 2022. The acquisitions, as well as the three Asda Express stores currently open, give Asda 478 convenience stores, with a commitment to open 300 more standalone c-stores by the end of 2026. This is in addition to its existing estate of 580 supermarkets and 31 Asda Living stores, as well as 321 fuel sites.
“The transaction is an important milestone for both companies. EG Group can focus on international growth underpinned by its strengthened balance sheet, whilst Asda can accelerate its convenience rollout on proven, well-invested sites,” said Lord Stuart Rose, Chairman of EG Group. “There is now a clear opportunity to grow and build the international business whilst ensuring EG plays a pivotal role in the energy transition.”
With headquarters in Leeds, Asda is the United Kingdom’s third-largest supermarket by market share with more than 640 stores. Its primary operations include the sales of groceries, clothing, general merchandise and fuel.
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