March 23, 2016
Cape Town – Lewis Group has completed the acquisition of a portfolio of 57 Ellerines and Beares stores in four southern African countries, expanding its store presence outside of South Africa to 120.
This follows regulatory and competition approvals in each of these countries for the R250 million acquisition announced in November 2015.
The stores are located in Namibia (21 stores), Botswana (20), Lesotho (10) and Swaziland (6).
Chief executive officer, Johan Enslin, said the newly acquired stores should make a meaningful contribution to the group’s profitability in the medium term.
“The stores in Botswana and Lesotho have already been incorporated into the group’s operations, with the Swaziland stores due to be integrated in early April and the Namibian stores in early May. The stores will trade under either the Lewis or Beares brands,” he said.
Lewis Group purchased the Beares brand and 61 stores in South Africa in 2014 after parent company Ellerines Furnishers was placed under business rescue. The Beares chain has since been expanded to 84 stores in South Africa under Lewis Group’s ownership.
Enslin said the addition of these Beares stores in southern Africa will further improve buying power and bring immediate scale benefits.
Lewis was one of the first local retailers to expand into neighbouring southern African countries in the late 1960s. Stores outside of South Africa now comprise 15% of the group’s store base.
“The acquisition of these stores will provide Lewis with access to new segments of the furniture retail market and also expand our existing customer base in each of these countries. Lewis has operated in these four countries for over 50 years so has extensive experience in these markets and a thorough understanding of the trading environments,” he added.
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For further information kindly contact
Graeme Lillie, Tier 1 Investor Relations 021 702 3102 / 082 468 1507
