The billionaire brothers behind Asda’s £6.8billion takeover are reportedly planning to open more than 300 convenience stores across their petrol station estate. Mohsin and Zuber Issa want to roll out “Asda on the Move” stores in their EG Group forecourts following a successful trial, according to The Sunday Times.
The siblings, who own around 400 petrol stations, have already introduced the new convenience store concept in five of their forecourts. The first “Asda on the Move” site opened in Walsall in October 2020. The Issa brothers acquired Asda this year with the private equity firm TDR Capital in a deal that saw the supermarket return to majority UK ownership for the first time in two decades.
In June this year, the pair agreed to sell off 27 fuel stations for the takeover to go ahead following a probe by the competition’s watchdog. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) had launched a probe into the deal in April due to fears that the acquisition could increase petrol prices for motorists. At the time of the CMA approving the takeover, EG Group operated 395 petrol stations while Asda owned 323 sites.
The Issa brothers, who started Euro Garages from a single forecourt in Greater Manchester, said they were “very proud to be investing in Asda”.
