South Africa's Mr Price makes European debut through German value retailer deal

JOHANNESBURG, Dec ‌10 (Reuters) - South African fashion retailer Mr Price will acquire NKD ‍Group, a ‌German-based discount retailer for up to 487 million euros ($567.55 million), it said ⁠on Wednesday, marking its first ‌entry to the European market.

By 1030 GMT, Mr Price shares were down 13.35%. 

Mr Price said that NKD, an apparel and homeware retailer with 2,108 stores in seven Central and ⁠Eastern European countries, is a strategic fit.

Market data indicates that the growth in the value ​retail market is outpacing that of the overall ‌retail market. In Europe, value ⁠retailing accounts for about 22% of the market.

"After meeting the NKD team, it was evident that this was the right business to pursue," ​said the group's Chief Executive Officer Mark Blair.

"Like us, they are value-retailers at heart and have a very clear understanding of who their customer is and how to best serve them," he added.

The acquisition of ​NKD, ‍which is from funds ​managed by TDR Capital LLP,  includes the purchase of all NKD shares and income from shareholder loans. The deal will be settled using a mix of existing cash reserves and debt facilities, Mr Price said in a statement.

The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals, including clearance from the European ⁠Commission and the South African Reserve Bank.

It is expected to close by the second quarter of 2026, ​Wednesday's statement said.

Once completed, Mr Price's annual revenue would increase to approximately 53 billion rand ($3.12 billion) from 40.9 billion rand, while the number of its stores would reach more than 5,000, ‌up from around 3,100,  and it would have more than  40,000 employees.

($1 = 0.8581 euros)

($1 = 17.0122 rand)

(Reporting by Siyanda Mthethwa;Editing by Sfundo Parakozov and Barbara Lewis)