Planet Organic Acquires Organic Rival

Planet Organic has completed the purchase of As Nature Intended in a deal which makes it the largest specialist organic retailer in the UK.

The acquisition of As Nature Intended’s chain of seven London-based organic and natural food stores is expected to be followed by the opening of ten further stores in Greater London in the next five years.

Planet Organic, founded in 1995, opened a new store in Queen’s Park (North London) in 2019, taking its shop count to eight. Edinburgh-based Inverleith became the firm’s majority shareholder to help expand the company’s growth in 2018.

Planet Organic’s Chairman, Ben Thomson, says: “This deal allows us to further the mission of Planet Organic to provide food and products that are healthy for our customers as well as healthy for the planet.

“We share a similar outlook to As Nature Intended, a company which, like Planet Organic, promotes wellness with high environmental standards. Both organisations believe the future of high street retailing is in providing experience-based shopping for the communities where we are located.”

“In the short term our primary focus is to make sure we are there to support our customers, and the customers of our newly-acquired stores, through the coronavirus outbreak. With the addition of As Nature Intended stores, we will be the largest organic grocery chain in the UK with plans to grow further as the popularity of healthy foods continues.”

Ecovia Intelligence Comment
Planet Organic with 15 stores is now the leading organic food retailer in the UK. It has overtaken Whole Foods Market with 7 stores. Although Planet Organic has an ambitious plan to expand its retail operations, there remain questions. How long will the COVID-19 pandemic last? What will be the long-term impact on consumer spending? How will it affect the retail landscape? Consumers maybe demanding more organic & health foods, however will online sales overshadow physical purchases?

Related Report: Global Market for Organic Food & Drink

Source: Daily Business, Ecovia Intelligence (17/03)