ICA buys IKI
Swedish ICA buys Lithuanian grocery chain IKI. The purchase price is 213 million euro, which corresponds to approximately 2.2 billion Swedish kronor.
ICA invests 600 million SEK on e-commerce
Ica Sweden will invest approximately 600 million SEK in a fully automated e-commerce solution from UK Ocado in 2018-2022.
This is ocado
- Ocado was established in the UK over 16 years ago and listed on the London Stock Exchange in July 2010.
- Ocado is the world’s largest dedicated online grocery retailer with over 580,000 active customers.
- Ocado has developed their own end-to-end operating solution for online grocery retail based on proprietary technology and IP.
- Ocado works with French Casino, Canadian Sobeys and British Morrisons, among others.
In 2018 the investment is about SEK 200 million. Change to Ocado e-commerce platform will be completed in 2021. A new highly automated warehouse for e-commerce in the Stockholm region is expected to be completed in 2022.
In addition to investments in technology of 600 million SEK, investments in a new warehouse will amount to 500 million. In total, ICA invests over one billion to modernize its online shopping!
“The agreement means that Ocado will adapt its world-leading e-commerce platform to Ica's business model,” CEO of ICA Group Per Strömberg said at a press conference Tuesday 2 May.
At the end of November 2017, the industry magazine Ica Nyheter wrote that Ocado was about to establish a "big" collaboration with Ica in Sweden, however Strömberg declined to answers the question at the time. Now it is a reality.
In the years 2018 - 2022, ICA Sweden invests approximately 600 million SEK in a fully automated e-commerce solution, which includes the UK e-commerce company Ocado's technology and e-commerce platform especially developed for groceries. In 2018, the investment is approximately MSEK 200.
Ocado has according to ICA a world-leading e-commerce platform for groceries and has been in the UK market since 2000. Ocado has previously established cooperation agreements with other grocery companies in the UK, Canada and France.
Ocado warehouse
Next generation
“Now we lay the foundation for next generation e-commerce offer and we get an important one puzzle pieces in place to realize our digital ambitions for the entire ICA Group. We have today the industry's most effective physical trading processes, and through this agreement can we create the most effective solutions for e-commerce,” says Strömberg.
In 2021, ICA Sweden will switch to Ocado's e-commerce platform and will build a new one highly automated warehouse for e-commerce in the Stockholm region, which is expected to be completed in 2022.
The agreement gives exclusivity in Sweden and the Baltic countries given that ICA lives up to some growth.
“The agreement means that Ocado will adapt its world-leading e-commerce platform to ICA's business model. At the same time, we benefit from the fact that Ocado will continue developing their platform to themselves and several other leading grocery companies. One Automated e-commerce stocks allow us to provide customers with a broader range and better deliveries, while streamlining ICA's logistics flows,” says Anders Svensson, CEO ICA Sweden.
“We are proud and happy about the cooperation with another of Europe's leading food retailer. ICA is already successful and innovative, but with Ocado's smart platform allows ICA stores to provide even better service, convenience and value to their customers. Our flexible, scalable modular solution is uniquely well prepared to meet the new challenges that the cooperation will require, and it will help ICA to deliver their online ambitions,” says Luke Jensen, CEO of Ocado Solutions.
The agreement with Ocado does not change ICA Sweden's existing business model where each ICA trader owns customer relationship.
