South Korean retail giant Lotte Group is seeking to acquire a discount retailer in China in an effort to expand its presence in the Chinese market.
“Lotte Group plans to acquire a discount retailer in China to tap into the Chinese discount store market, but it is still too early to reveal the details of the acquisition deal,” said a Lotte Group official.
“We will get the tangible results of the deal as early as year end or the beginning of next year,” he said.
The discount retailer has five to seven outlets in China and the takeover price is expected to reach $173 million, industry sources said.
Early last month, the Korean retailer said it plans to open the first Chinese outlet of its discount chain Lotte Mart in Qingdao, China, by end of next year.
Lotte will also open its first Lotte Mart store in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam, at the end of next year and the first branch of its affiliate Lotte Department Store in Beijing, China in the first half of next year.
Lotte Department Store opened its first overseas branch in Moscow in September.
In March, Lotte Group set up a holding company named Lotte (China) Investment Co. to advance into the Chinese food and beverage markets.
Lotte has been operating a total of 17 affiliates in the retail, petrochemical and food sectors in China since 1994.
