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Fuelling business growth in Blackburn and beyond
Over the last eighteen months PwC’s North West Transaction Services team have supported EG Group on four separate occasions, two within the last twelve months. We’ve provided financial due diligence and sale and purchase agreement support to further their acquisition strategy, with two transactions in the US and two in Europe growing their footprint on both sides of the Atlantic.
Setting the scene
Founded in 2001 by brothers Zuber and Mohsin Issa, EG Group currently owns and manages approximately 2,600 sites across the UK, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg and Italy, employing more than 12,500 staff across retail brands such as ESSO, BP, Shell, Carrefour, Louis Delhaize, SPAR, Starbucks, Burger King, KFC, Greggs, Pomme de Pain and Subway.
Prior to the recent acquisition strategy EG Group had no US footprint and now, a little over twelve months later, has a network of 1,700 stores and a growing European forecourt portfolio.
How we helped
The PwC team led by Syedul Hussain, PwC Transaction Services partner, provided support on the acquisition/sale of:
- Kroger’s network of 762 convenience store sites. Kroger’s store business operates in 18 states across the US and includes 66 franchise operations. The stores employ 11,000 associates and operate under the names such as Turkey Hill, Loaf ’N Jug, Kwik Shop, Tom Thumb and Quik Stop.
- NRGValue Network in the Netherlands, which operates 97 Esso-branded sites in the Netherlands, further expanding EG Group’s retail network in the Netherlands and reinforcing its position as a market leader, reaching 595 stations.
- US firm Cumberland Farms. The firm operates 600 convenience retail stores and fuel stations across seven states, employing 9,000 people.
- The sale of EG Group’s European fuel card business, Go Fuel Card, to WEX Inc, a leading financial technology service provider
“We would like to extend our thanks to the team at PwC for their help and support in helping to bring this important strategic acquisition to a successful conclusion.
This is an exciting time for EG Group, the entry into the US market presents a fantastic opportunity to deliver a successful retail offer to consumers across the various states. We have had much success across Europe and we firmly believe the Kroger assets present a fantastic foundation to overlay our retail experience and know-how in the US.”
Making a difference
Supporting private businesses is core to our regional strategy and we are pleased to have played a role in helping businesses like EG group in their international expansion plans. These transactions will take the EG Group’s network to a total of nearly 1,700 stores across the US, operating in 30 states and retailing over 2.5 billion gallons of fuel with merchandise sales of more than US$3 billion on an annualised basis.
In Europe through the addition of the NRGValue Network Esso branded sites, EG Group will further expand its retail network in the Netherlands and reinforce its position as a market leader reaching 595 stations.