Fusion of Retail Holding and LabelVie: Outlining the Future Giant in Distribution

Retail Holding and LabelVie are poised to take a significant strategic step with a merger and acquisition project that will give birth to a fully integrated reference player in distribution in Morocco.

Driven by strong industrial synergies and a clearly stated ambition by 2030, the operation will be accompanied by the listing of Retail Holding and aims to create a more robust, better capitalized, and positioned multi-brand group to accelerate its growth at the national and international levels.

Retail Holding and LabelVie have announced a merger and acquisition project that will give birth to a new entity listed on the Casablanca Stock Exchange, specializing in multi-format distribution.

The operation aims to bring together under a single group complementary activities to strengthen strategic coordination, mutualize key expertise, and unlock significant growth synergies.

"We are announcing today a major operation (...) that aims to create an integrated, multi-brand group of international dimension, more profitable and financially more solid," said Amine BENNIS, Deputy General Manager for administrative and financial affairs at LabelVie.

For management, this merger is a natural extension of the group's development. "This operation is part of the continuity of LabelVie's trajectory and aims to expand its activities within a more coherent and diversified ensemble," also emphasized Rachid HADNI, Chairman of the Board of Directors of LabelVie.

A long-term strategic convergence

Retail Holding, a leading shareholder of LabelVie, operates in distribution and services, with a positioning centered on the development of international franchises in Morocco (Kiabi, Burger King, Brands & Co, Ansamble).

Facing it, LabelVie imposes itself as the Moroccan leader in multi-format large distribution, with over 400 stores in 37 cities, under the Carrefour, Carrefour Market, Carrefour Express, Atacadao, and Supeco brands.

This rapprochement is based on a historical relationship and a shared vision of retail development. "This operation is the result of a strategic convergence between two partner groups of very long standing," said Riad LAISSAOUI, President and CEO of Retail Holding.

Multiple synergies and a surge in group power

The industrial logic of the merger is based on clearly identified synergies:

- Commercial synergies: centralization of purchases, optimization of volumes, development of cross-selling and multi-brand loyalty programs

- Operational synergies: mutualization of the supply chain, support functions (IT, logistics, finance, HR), and improvement of operational efficiency

- Economies of scale: improvement of margins thanks to the critical size of the group

- Common development platform: acceleration of the deployment of new brands in Morocco and internationally.

These synergies should generate a tangible financial impact, with an additional 118 MDH of EBITDA from 2027 and over 166 MDH from 2028, according to the group's projections.

The merger will also allow for a simplification of governance and a more efficient allocation of capital. "This operation will improve strategic visibility and optimize the allocation of resources between different business areas," said Amine BENNIS.

In this logic, Riad LAISSAOUI evokes a real "scale change," with a sharing of expertise between brands to "develop more quickly, more structured, and more performant."

An ambitious trajectory by 2030

The new entity has particularly ambitious growth ambitions, with a target revenue of 47 billion dirhams by 2030, more than double the current level and nearly 11 billion dirhams more than the scenario.