Saigon Co.op has just taken over the whole business operations, staff included, of the 18 Auchan Vietnam branches.

Saigon Co.op and Auchan Vietnam sign the hand-over agreement.

Saigon Co.op and French retailer Auchan have just announced completing the hand-over process of the whole business operations of Auchan in Vietnam. Accordingly, Saigon Co.op will take over 18 stores, 15 of which the French retailer has previously closed and three that have been operating at a profit, along with the e-commerce platform and online application from Auchan Vietnam.

Although the value of the acquisition was not revealed, Saigon Co.op representative said that the two sides have ended the negotiations on price. Saigon Co.op will operate these stores until Lunar New Year 2020 after which the sides will sit down to negotiate further co-operation opportunities, including exporting local products via Auchan's global retail chain.

The whole business operation, employees, and goods of Auchan Vietnam will be managed by Saigon Co.op. All employees of Auchan will join Saigon Co.op's staff.

Acquiring Auchan is part of Saigon Co.op's strategy of expanding scale and market share. Thanks to this deal, Saigon Co.op's target of 1,000 stores by this year could be reached far easier as the company has 800 stores already.

Do Quoc Huy, marketing manager of Saigon Co.op, said that this company would rename 18 Auchan supermarkets to Co.opmart, Co.optra, and Finelife.

Auchan started developing its first supermarket chain in Vietnam in 2015. As of present, the chain has 18 supermarkets in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and Tay Ninh.

One month ago, the French retailer announced pulling out of Vietnam. Earlier on Wednesday, Auchan Retail CEO Edgar Bonte told Les Echos that the group had decided to sell its 18 outlets in Vietnam that currently generate a revenue of €45 million ($50.4 million).

As reported by Reuter, the French retailer had said in March that it was conducting a review of its loss-making markets, such as Italy and Vietnam where it has faced tough market conditions.