International law firm CMS has advised Bibby Line Group on the sale of Costcutter Supermarkets Group (CSG) to Bestway Wholesale, the UK’s largest independent wholesaler. The agreement is part of a planned strategic realignment of Bibby Line Group’s portfolio.
Under the sale CSG and its brands will become part of Bestway Wholesale’s retail division and continue to operate as normal. Approximately 1,500 stores branded under Costcutter, Mace, Supershop, Kwiksave, and Simply Fresh will join Bestway Wholesale’s current retail brands.
Completion is conditional on the UK Financial Control Authority’s approval, which is expected in the first quarter of 2021.
Howard Gill, CMS partner and Head of the Corporate team in Manchester, comments: “We are pleased to have assisted Bibby Line Group in the strategic realignment of its portfolio. As a full-service law firm with more than 250 Corporate lawyers across the UK, CMS is well-placed to advise our clients on strategic sales of this nature.”
The CMS team advising Bibby Line Group was led by Howard Gill and included James Kay, Caroline Walker and Gareth Saynor (Corporate); Tim Dobbing (Tax); Tracey Marsden (Employment); and Kabir Garyali (Competition).
Bestway were advised by Osborne Clarke.
