Bredin Prat advises French supermarket group Casino on its agreements with retail group Groupement Les Mousquetaires with a view to the sale of a number of Casino Group retail outlets

Bredin Prat is advising the French supermarket group Casino in connection with its agreements with retail group Groupement Les Mousquetaires with a view to the sale of a number of retail outlets.

On 26 May 2023, the Casino Group announced that it had signed a memorandum of understanding with Groupement Les Mousquetaires, which significantly deepens and extends their business and purchasing partnerships, and which optimises their respective networks.

The memorandum of understanding notably provides for the sale by the Casino Group to Groupement Les Mousquetaires of a number of retail outlets from within the Casino France scope (Hypermarkets, Supermarkets, Convenience Stores) representing around €1.15 billion in turnover (including VAT). Groupement Les Mousquetaires has also undertaken to purchase from the Casino Group, if the Casino Group so requests, an additional number of stores representing €500 million in turnover (including VAT). The first sale transactions would take place by the end of 2023.

The project is subject to the consultation procedures with the employee representative bodies of the Casino Group and of Groupement les Mousquetaires, and, as the case may be, to clearance from the relevant regulatory bodies.

Groupement Les Mousquetaires will also take a minority stake in Casino Group’s future financing round, with an equity investment of €100 million.

The Bredin Prat team advising the Casino Group comprised:

• Corporate: Benjamin Kanovitch and Emmanuel Masset (partners), Léa Francis and Olivier Bishop
• Competition: Igor Simic (partner), Medhi El Alem Champeaux and Ghita Ghissassi
• Employment: Laetitia Tombarello (partner), Caroline Combes, Melchior Bebey and Emilie Iafrate
• Tax: Julien Gayral (partner), Guillaume Djian, Claire Chabredier and Charlotte Decommer