US retail giant Wal-Mart has expanded its presence in the Chinese retail sector through an agreement to purchase a 35% stake in Bounteous Company, the group that operates Chinese hypermarket chain Trust-Mart.
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Trust-Mart has 101 outlets in 34 cities throughout China.
“Through this investment in Trust-Mart we have the opportunity to expand our presence in China, one of the world’s fastest growing retail markets,” said Wal-Mart vice chairman Michael Duke. “This is an important step in bringing additional scale to our China retail business,” he added
Trust-Mart chairman John Yu said that Trust-Mart would benefit from the US retailer’s back-end experience. “This alliance positions Trust-Mart to offer even higher levels of customer service to Trust-Mart’s loyal customers as we benefit from Wal-Mart’s expertise in logistics and operations. It also will give our suppliers new opportunities to expand in China and potentially become part of Wal-Mart’s global vendor network,” he commented.
Wal-Mart China already operates 68 Supercenters, three Sam’s Clubs and two Neighbourhood Markets in 36 Chinese cities.
Trust-Mart will continue to operate under its own retail banner. Both companies plan to continue to expand their store base, Wal-Mart said.
Subject to certain conditions, Wal-Mart said that it may opt to acquire full ownership of the retail chain in the future.
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By GlobalDataFinancial details of the deal were not disclosed.
