Hungary’s Oriens fund buys another Czech retail chain

Hungarian investment holding Oriens is fast becoming a major player in Czech retail, Slovak business daily Hospodarske Noviny (HN) reports. Oriens has private equity investments in Czechia, Hungary and Slovakia. Having fully acquired Flosman in 2021, it now plans to take over the shops of peer Pramen CZ. 

The Pramen chain, which includes the Enapo as well as Pramen-branded food shops, currently operates 39 outlets, mainly in Czechia. In 2022 its turnover was CZK 634mn (EUR 26.74mn). 

If the Czech antimonopoly office approves the transaction, the Hungarian fund would control a network of almost 300 shops in the country.

Exec confirms deal is on

“Flosman will acquire a 100% share in the Pramen CZ retail store network,” Rosa Market holding executive director Milon Miller told HN, confirming the mooted merger, but refusing to comment on the amount of the transaction and other conditions.

Miller noted the takeover of Pramen CZ is in line with Oriens’ previous statements on creating a leading player in the domestic retail and wholesale food markets.

Miller earlier said Rosa Market has long been preparing for a Hungarian fund to take over part of its business, HN notes. The original owner of the loss-making holding Radek Horak agreed to sell to Oriens the company after the completion of a restructuring. This will include the sale of non-retail assets and a slimming down of the whole group, Miller said.

“Oriens does not hide the fact that it has further ambitions in the domestic retail market, so the intended future takeover of the Rosa Market holding is a logical step,” said Miller. 

Flosman posted sales of EUR 114mn

Flosman is a chain that includes a network of almost 150 Flop and Flop Top corners shops, mainly in southern Bohemia, as well as the Potravyny stores, HN wrote. The company also operates Potravina CZ shops, of which there are less than one hundred. Flosman last year posted sales of CZK 2.7bn (EUR 114.03mn) and has a payroll of over 700.

The individual chains’ profiles complement each other well, as Flosman operates mainly in southern Bohemia, Pramen more in eastern and northern Bohemia, and Enapo in Moravia.

Oriens also big in prefabricated buildings

In addition to Czechia retail, Oriens, has also focused on investments in modular buildings, the construction of which consists of combinable modules or containers. 

In 2017, Oriens bought Imecon, then Pegas Container in 2019 and finally Contimade in February 2021. These acquisitions created a group with a turnover of over 1.5 billion crowns, which already has a 15% share of the German market.