Seven & i Holdings, a major distributor of the parent company, has closed the second bid for the sale of the department store Sogo & Seibu, which continues to be sluggish, and three foreign investment funds have responded to it.
Seven & i plans to proceed with negotiations to close the deal and solidify the sales destination in the near future.
Sogo & Seibu currently has 10 stores mainly in the Tokyo metropolitan area, but in addition to the rise of online shopping, it has been in the final deficit for the third consecutive year due to the influence of the Korona-ka, and the parent company Seven & i is the main business. As part of concentrating management resources on the convenience store business, we are considering selling a majority stake.
According to people familiar with the matter, the second bid for the sale of Sogo Seibu was closed on the 23rd, with the US "Fortress Investment Group", the US "Lone Star", and Singapore's government fund. It means that three foreign investment funds of "GIC" have responded to this.
Seven & i will negotiate with each fund about the sale price, future business direction, employee employment, etc. based on the ability to attract customers and the value of real estate of major stores such as Ikebukuro and Yokohama. It is expected that negotiations will be held, and the policy is to solidify the seller soon.