Investec acquires Spinneys Egypt

Investec Asset Management (IAM) announced on Sunday that it has completed its first private equity investment in Egypt through acquiring Spinneys Egypt supermarket chain after two-month talks that began in March, the company's first-ever PE investment.

In a statement, IAM described Spinneys as a rapidly growing supermarket chain in Egypt, saying that this marks the eighth investment in IAM’s second pan-African private equity fund.

The statement added that the business is one of the leading grocery retailers in Egypt, having expanded to 13 outlets, compromising two hypermarkets and eleven supermarkets, with two new openings in the last eight months.

The expansion has been implemented by the current management team, led by CEO Mohanad Adly, who collectively have a long and successful track record in Egyptian retail. They have also led the expansion of the business beyond Greater Cairo, Giza and Hurghada, into Alexandria, the North Coast, Minya and the recently announced Tanta Mall.

According to the statement, the launch of a home delivery service and the ongoing investment into a loyalty programme have also been key initiatives.

“This kind of investment offers us the opportunity to support the accelerated expansion of the business across Egypt and we are excited about the very attractive growth opportunity for the business,” said Nick Marsh, Investment Principal at Investec Asset Management.