Sainsbury’s set to bag Nisa for £130m

SAINSBURY’S is closing in on a £130 million deal to buy convenience store group Nisa as part of a flurry of acquisitions that is changing the face of the retail sector.

The supermarket giant bought Argos last year for £1.4 billion, which was quickly followed by Tesco’s offer to buy cash and carry chain Booker for £3.7 billion. Nisa, a buying group which supplies independent retailers, has 1,400 members with 2,500 grocery shops.

The business would complement Sainsbury’s chain of 800 convenience stores. The group has a turnover of £1.5 billion.

Sainsbury’s, with sales of £29 billion, said it would not comment on ‘market speculation’. Last week Amazon announced it plans to buy up-market US grocery chain Whole Foods, which also has stores in the UK, for $13.7 billion (£10.7 billion).

The market reacted by wiping £1.5 billion from retail stocks including Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Marks & Spencer.

The activity comes as shoppers feel the pinch of lower wages and rising prices. The Nisa deal could be regarded as an aggressive strike against Tesco’s plan to absorb Booker, which is still being assessed by the Competition and Markets Authority.

It will also be seen as further encroachment by the supermarkets into the local convenience store sector, still dominated by family firms.