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I’m disproportionately excited to hear about the latest expansion plans by WM Morrisons, which is currently preparing a £1.5bn bid to buy Iceland – the frozen supermarket chain, not the volcanic island.
Landsbanki, which took control of the Iceland chain in 2008, has put the chain up for sale. The bank’s own collapse obviously has not done wonders for the supermarket. The auction will potentially see a head to head offer from Asda, and a partial offer from Sainsbury’s.
So, if successful, what does this mean for Morrisons? Lots, that’s what. Success would catapult the northern supermarket chain into the top 5 of Britain’s food retailers. Market share would increase by 2%, landing it a mere 2% and 3% below Sainsbury’s and Asda, respectively. Tesco would remain the undisputed leader.
Add to this, the 750 Iceland stores on top of Morrisons 442 would mean nearly triple the number of stores. And, although this is a food deal, the extra clout should only contribute to the success of its soon to be launched children’s offering (following the acquisition of Kiddicare earlier this year).
By ‘eck, the current giants of British food retail need to watch out: those canny Northerners are about!
