Thai retail group Central looks set to expand its international portfolio through acquisitions, Inside Retail Asia reports.
The shopping centre and retail operator has stated its intention to make an annual investment of THB10bn (US$321.4m) to acquire other businesses, primarily in ASEAN and European markets.
This development follows Central’s acquisition of Italy oldest retailer La Rinascente in 2011, which had also acquired the Danish department store Illum in March that year.
La Rinascente intends to open outlets in China, Indonesia and Vietnam.
“Not only did the deal put us in the limelight, the brand has also strengthened our business portfolio,” Inside Retail Asia reports executive chairman Sudhitham Chirathivat as saying. “Only three months after we bought La Rinascente, we received numerous offers from many leading retailers from places such as France, Switzerland and Germany.”
However, Chirathivat added that cultural differences can pose challenges to running business internationally.
“It’s hard to fully understand consumers’ demand in another country,” he said. “ASEAN is a relatively easy target for us because of similar cultures and climate.”
Central has said that, in terms of the size of ownership, it intends to acquire 100 per cent of the business interest, to an absolute minimum of 30 per cent on the condition of maintaining management participation.
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