LAVAL, QUEBEC AND CRANBERRY TOWNSHIP, PA. — Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc., the Canadian parent company of Circle K, has agreed to acquire GetGo Café + Markets from Giant Eagle Inc., a supermarket chain based in Pennsylvania.
GetGo operates 270 gas station and convenience store locations in Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, Maryland and Indiana. The company staffs approximately 3,500 employees.
“We are excited to welcome GetGo into the Couche-Tard family,” says Brian Hannasch, president and CEO of Couche-Tard. “We look forward to growing together as we learn from and continue GetGo’s innovative approaches to serving its local customers and communities.”
“We are energized by the potential for both Giant Eagle and GetGo as a result of this transaction,” adds Bill Artman, CEO of Giant Eagle. “This enhances our focus on our core supermarket and pharmacy businesses.”
GetGo has multiple retail models, including open-concept stores and standalone kiosks, with an emphasis on “food first.” As part of this transaction, Couche-Tard and Giant Eagle have agreed to maintain and partner together on Giant Eagle’s myPerks loyalty program for customers.
Couche-Tard expects the deal to close in 2025 following standard regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions. The financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed by Couche-Tard or Giant Eagle.
$31 billion offer for 7-Eleven, Speedway owner
In addition to the GetGo acquisition, Couche-Tard made a “friendly,” non-binding proposal to acquire Seven & i Holdings Co. Ltd., the Japanese parent company of the 7-Eleven and Speedway chains of gas stations and convenience stores. Multiple media outlets have reported that the dollar amount for the merger would total $31 billion.
Couche-Tard announced in a release that the company “is focused on reaching a mutually agreeable transaction that benefits both companies’ customers, employees, franchisees and shareholders.”
Seven & i confirmed it received the preliminary takeover bid, which would entail Couche-Tard acquiring all of its outstanding shares. The company said in a statement that it has appointed a special committee to the board of directors comprising solely outside independent directors to review the proposal.
“Consistent with its obligation to act in the best interest of its shareholders and other stakeholders of the company, the special committee intends to conduct a prompt, careful and comprehensive review of the proposal, after which a response will be made to Couche-Tard,” according to a statement from Seven & i.
Stephen Hayes Dacus, chairperson of Seven & i’s board of directors, will lead the takeover bid review. The company announced it has not decided to accept nor reject the proposal and has not entered discussions with Couche-Tard for alternative outcomes.
Alimentation Couche-Tard is based in Laval, Quebec, and operates in 31 countries and territories, including the United States, Canada, Belgium, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands and Hong Kong. The company employs nearly 149,000 people through its network of 16,700 stores, most of which have gas station components. The company’s brands include Couche-Tard, Circle K and Ingo.
The price of the company’s stock, which trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange, closed on Monday, Aug. 19 at 81.77 Canadian dollars per share, up from CAD$69.17 a year ago, an 18.2 percent increase.
Giant Eagle is based in Cranberry Township, Pa., and operates more than 470 stores in the Northeast, Midwest and Mid-Atlantic. Founded in 1931, the company’s portfolio includes food, fuel and pharmacy retail locations under the Giant Eagle, Giant Eagle Pharmacy, GetGo and Market District brands.
— John Nelson