
Lagard re Travel Retail signs an agreement to acquire International Duty Free (IDF), Belgium s leading Travel Retail operator also present in Luxembourg and Kenya This new acquisition will enable the Lagard re group to strengthen its leadership position on the Travel Retail market by reinvesting proceeds from disposals.
The completion of this transaction is subject to a number of customary conditions, including regulatory approval.
Consolidation of IDF's businesses would bring Lagard re Travel Retail's annual revenue to 5.3 billion(1), cementing its position as the world's second-largest Travel Retail(2) operator and third-largest operator of Duty Free & Fashion airport points of sale.
The acquisition of IDF enables Lagard re Travel Retail to extend its presence to a further leading European hub in Brussels with high-quality operations and recently refurbished stores. It also helps the Group strengthen its positions in Luxembourg and in Africa with its entry into Kenya.
The amount of the transaction is 250 million.
IDF is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Compagnie Nationale Portefeuille (CNP) and since its creation in 1958 has been the operator of Belgian Sky Shops, the first tax free store at Brussels airport, and leader of the Duty Free & Fashion market in Belgium.
IDF holds long-term contracts and currently operates more than 30 boutiques, including 25 Duty Free, Fashion and Confectionery points of sale at Brussels airport, two Duty Free stores at Charleroi airport, and The Belgian Chocolate House premium confectionery stores at the principal Gare du Midi rail station in Brussels, in the centre of Antwerp and in Luxembourg. It also operates a boutique in Kenya.
IDF generated total revenue of 183 million in 2018.
Besides The Belgian Chocolate House, IDF's portfolio chiefly comprises its own brands, including Fashion Studio, The Luxury Hall, Summer Time and Precious Time (Fashion and Watches) and Epicure (Gastronomy). The portfolio also includes partnerships with premium brands such as Longchamp, Tumi and Hugo Boss in the Fashion segment and MAC, Jo Malone and Rituals in Perfumes and Cosmetics.
The close affinity between the two companies in terms of culture and strategy will help ensure the acquisition's success
The IDF acquisition will enhance Lagard re Travel Retail's strategy, with IDF's culture and operating standards fully aligned with the four pillars of the division's approach:
Operational excellence: IDF brings a high-quality portfolio of stores that have been recently refurbished or are currently in refurbishment, along with the highest operating standards, in line with Lagard re Travel Retails's requirements.
Partner of choice: IDF has a close working relationship with both its concession grantors and its suppliers.
Profitable growth: IDF's businesses are profitable and will be accretive to all of the division's financial ratios, with long-term contracts and an effective operational management team.
Agile and efficient organisation: IDF's entrepreneurial and innovative culture is closely aligned with Lagard re Travel Retail's own, which allows greater operating agility.
To facilitate the acquisition's success and IDF's integration into the Lagard re group, IDF's experienced, high-profile management team will remain in the driving seat of the company.
A value-generating transaction
This acquisition has been valued at 250 million(3), or around 8x IDF's pro forma EBITDA(4) for 2020, factoring in 7 million in recurring synergies expected to be unlocked through to 2022. It is expected to deliver solid cash generation and be accretive to Lagard re Travel Retail's recurring EBIT, as well as extending the average life of the Group's concession agreements.
The combination of the operating and sales expertise of both IDF and Lagard re Travel Retail should significantly boost sales and help to unlock the recurring synergies.
The IDF acquisition will help Lagard re Travel Retail bolster its presence in the fast-growing international premium chocolate segment by leveraging IDF's experience and privileged contacts with suppliers in this segment as well as the premium The Belgian Chocolate House concept, which can be developed on new markets.
The financing of this acquisition falls within the scope of the re-use of the proceeds from disposals, as part of the Group's strategic refocusing launched in 2018.
The transaction is expected to be finalised during the fourth quarter of 2019.
Xavier Le Clef, Managing Director of CNP and Chairman of IDF:
IDF is special to us at CNP because we have supported its development since 1991. We're now passing the baton to Lagard re Travel Retail, convinced that they will be a great partner in maintaining IDF's growth over the long term while preserving its unique DNA as well as its strong commitment to its employees and partners. I'd like to thank the IDF teams wholeheartedly for their amazing work all these years as they built the company up to occupy the leadership position it now enjoys in the Travel Retail market.
Dag Rasmussen, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Lagard re Travel Retail:
The acquisition has cemented our position as the world's third-largest operator of Duty Free airport points of sale and as the European leader in Travel Retail. We're delighted to be entering both the Belgian and Kenyan markets, which offer wonderful development opportunities, and at the same time stepping up our operations in Luxembourg. Above all, we are confident that IDF's operational expertise and entrepreneurial mind-set will ensure its successful integration into Lagard re Travel Retail and contribute to the achievement of our strategic objectives.
(1) Based on 100% of 2018 revenue, including the pro fo
Most recent headlines
13/03/2025
(L-R) Stephanie Suganami, Tatanka Means, John Malkovich, Ayo Edebiri, and Juliette Lewis attend the premiere of Opus at Eccles Theatre in Park City. (Photo by...
13/03/2025
Spotify took center stage at the London Book Fair this week, reaffirming our commitment to the audiobook market and showcasing our impact on the publishing indu...
13/03/2025
At Spotify, we work every day to lift up new voices, giving creators the opportunity to live off their art. Through Spotify Audiobooks, our in-house publishing ...
13/03/2025
Every time airborne law enforcement (ALE) teams fly, they expect their equipment to perform. Whether airborne units are conducting support for ground teams, bor...
13/03/2025
Sunday February 9 saw the annual return of the US' biggest television event, the Super Bowl LIX. Jamie McCombs, Fox Sports Audio Consultant / Sr. Audio capt...
13/03/2025
On Sunday March 2, stars across the film industry gathered at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles for the 97th Academy Awards. Production Sound Mixer Paul Sandweis...
13/03/2025
WUPPERTAL, Germany Riedel Communications will feature its new StageLink family of smart edge devices, Smart Audio and Mixing Engine (SAME) and Virtual Smart Pan...
13/03/2025
TAG Video Systems and Harmonic Partner to Deliver Enhanced Real-Time Monitoring ...
13/03/2025
DigitalGlue Invites NAB Visitors to Experience New Features in Managed Storage P...
13/03/2025
FOR-A America Theme - Connecting the Present, Building the Future - Comes to Lif...
13/03/2025
CTIA, the wireless industry association, has named former FCC Chairman Aji Pai as its President and Chief Executive Officer, effective April 1. He replaces Mere...
13/03/2025
he National Association of Broadcasters is urging the FCC to end its investigation of that controversial CBS interview with Kamala Harris stating there is no ...
13/03/2025
MIAMI CBS News & Stations continues to expand its use of augmented and virtual reality technologies with the planned launch of an augmented reality/virtual real...
13/03/2025
Srividhya Srinivasan, co-founder and chief customer success & innovation Officer at Amagi, tells TVBEurope how staying ahead of the latest trends is essential f...
13/03/2025
WASHINGTON FCC Chairman Brendan Carr announced that the agency has launched a massive, new deregulatory initiative that could potentially subject virtually all ...
13/03/2025
SUNNYVALE, Calif. SDVI has announced that it has integrated its Rally media supply chain management platform with the Spectra Vail multi-cloud data management s...
13/03/2025
ATLANTA Gray Media has announced that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has granted a waiver of its local ownership rules to permit Gray Media to acqu...
13/03/2025
TV Tech: What do you anticipate will be the most significant technology trends at the 2025 NAB Show?...
13/03/2025
Watch Student Naomi Soleils Folk Pop Performance on The Voice The songwriting major sang Stars by Grace Potter and the Nocturnals during the blind auditions.
...
13/03/2025
Roku Debuts NWSL Zone' Within Roku Sports to Spotlight Live Games, Content Feature marks Rokus first women's league-branded zone within service By Bra...
13/03/2025
Pixels, Images, Video, AI - and Us: A Perspective on AI from NDI Inventor Andrew...
13/03/2025
SVG New Sponsor Spotlight: Lighting Design Group's Steve Brill, Dennis Size ...
13/03/2025
IOC, Comcast NBCU Ink $3B Media-Rights Extension for Olympic Games Through 2036;...
13/03/2025
NCAA March Madness Live Returns with Expanded Availability of MultiView Vertical...
13/03/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Cosm's Devin Poolman on What It Takes To Deliver the Immersive...
13/03/2025
Sky Business, Sky's B2B division, providing connectivity and content to busi...
13/03/2025
Rohde & Schwarz launches R&S NRP140TWG(N) thermal power sensor: A new benchmark ...
13/03/2025
We asked the questions, analysed the answers and now we're excited to share the results of the fifth edition of the ICG Marketing Survey.
Our 2025 survey p...
13/03/2025
SAN JOSE, Calif. - March 13, 2025 Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced a breakthrough in video streaming innovation with the launch of new origin capabilitie...
13/03/2025
Haivision Showcases Mission-Critical Video Solutions at SOF Week 2025
Haivision's video wall systems, ISR technology, and DoDIN APL-certified video distri...
13/03/2025
Company Leads the Way with New Software-Based Production Platform, 12G Switcher,...
13/03/2025
A new Apple Immersive concert experience, Metallica, is coming to Apple Vision Pro this Friday, March 14. Filmed in Mexico City during the sold-out second-year ...
13/03/2025
Here is your host, Patrick Kielty!
Shake your Shamrocks, Patrick Kielty will be...
13/03/2025
This St. Patrick's weekend, RT invites you to celebrate all things Irish, showcasing the very best of Irish sport, entertainment and live coverage from the...
13/03/2025
What's next in AI is at GTC 2025. Not only the technology, but the people and ideas that are pushing AI forward - creating new opportunities, novel solution...
13/03/2025
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
By combining T-Mobile's robust network, Thal...
13/03/2025
Bundle up - GeForce NOW is bringing a flurry of Blizzard titles to its ever-expanding library.
Prepare to weather epic gameplay in the cloud, tackling the genr...
13/03/2025
AI is leveling up the world's most beloved games, as the latest advancements...
13/03/2025
PC game modding is massive, with over 5 billion mods downloaded annually. Mods p...
12/03/2025
O Spotify acaba de lan ar o relat rio Loud & Clear deste ano, uma vis o transpar...
12/03/2025
Spotify acaba de presentar el informe Loud & Clear de este a o, una mirada trans...
12/03/2025
Ramadan, a period of profound spiritual significance for Muslims worldwide, is a time for fasting, prayer, reflection, and community. Enrich your experience thi...
12/03/2025
Spotify has just unveiled this year's Loud & Clear report, a transparent loo...
12/03/2025
More than 70% of FAST programming has been produced since 2010, according to new Gracenote report
NEW YORK March 12, 2025 Gracenote, the content data busin...
12/03/2025
GEONA, Nev. Independent digital and linear advertising rep firm Viamedia will adopt cloud-based ShowSeeker Pilot as its primary ad campaign and order management...
12/03/2025
BRUSSELS Mediagenix has announced that Wael Yasin has joined the company as sales director Central Europe....
12/03/2025
LONDON A new study highlights opportunities for shoppable TV and the massive impact online consumer spending is having on the economy, with Omdia predicting tha...
12/03/2025
CUPERTINO, Calif. Interra Systems has announced that Comcast Technology Solutions has integrated recent updates to BATON Version 9 into its operations....
12/03/2025
Nevion announces new 400G addition to its eMerge SDN media fabric offering
Brie Clayton March 12, 2025
0 Comments
High-capacity switch enhances existi...
12/03/2025
DaVinci Resolve Studio Delivers Cinematic Sound for Adam Bol
Brie Clayton March 12, 2025
0 Comments
Feature film relies on DaVinci Resolve Studio for ...