International legal practice Osborne Clarke has advised Bestway Wholesale on its acquisition of Costcutter Supermarkets Group for an undisclosed sum from Bibby Line Group.

Following FCA approval, approximately 1,500 stores branded under Costcutter, Mace, Supershop, Kwiksave and Simply Fresh will join the current Bestway retail brands of Bargain Booze, Best-One, Wine Rack, Select Convenience and Central Convenience.

On completion, Bestway, the family owned business, which also operates across the pharmacy, banking and cement sectors, will become the eleventh largest independently owned multi-national conglomerate in the UK.

Edward Persse, corporate partner, commented: "We are proud to have acted for Bestway.  They have been a pleasure to work with and we wish all involved every success. Particularly this year, it feels special to be part of a good news story in the sector".

The team was led by Edward Persse (Partner, M&A) who was supported by a large cross disciplinary team that included Al Francis (Partner, PE), Jonathan Falconer (Associate Director, M&A), Krish Mistry (Associate, M&A), Will Robertson (Partner, Commercial), Celine O'Connor (Associate, Commercial), Simon Neill (Partner, Competition), Katherine Kirrage (Legal Director, Competition) Rebecca Malone (Senior Associate, Competition), Clare Burman (Legal Director, Financial Institutions Group), Mark Smith (Associate, Financial Institutions Group), Dolf Darnton (Partner, Real Estate), Sarah Beard (Associate Director, Real Estate), Katie Vickery (Partner, Regulatory Disputes), Matthew Vernon (Associate, Regulatory Disputes), Georgia Lythgoe (Senior Associate, Regulatory Disputes), Veronica Webster (Associate, Regulatory Disputes), Lara Flynn (Senior Associate, Employment), Jon Dodds (Associate, Banking), Mathew Oliver (Partner, Tax) and James Hamon (Associate Director, Tax).

Osborne Clarke’s Corporate team is considered a go-to practice for many companies in the Retail and Consumer sector, working with established retail brands as well as market challengers. The team advises at every stage of company development across a wide range of corporate issues and is well placed to do so with complementary expertise in the commercial, regulatory and competition sectors.

CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP, led by Howard Gill, advised Bibby Line Group.

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