CR Asia offers HK$629m for Saint Honore

Convenience Retail Asia, the Li & Fung Retailing unit which operates more than 300 Circle K convenience stores, has offered to take over Saint Honore Holdings, a bakery with 85 outlets in Hong Kong, Macau and the mainland, in a transaction valued at HK$629 million.

The company said it would pay HK$2.95 per Saint Honore share, a 43.9 per cent premium to the last closing price of HK$2.05 on November 13 before trading was halted. Saint Honore shareholders also have the option of receiving one CR Asia share plus HK$2.95 in cash for every two bakery shares they hold.

CR Asia shares were suspended from trading last Monday. They last traded at HK$2.95.

Victor Fung Kwok-king, chairman of CR Asia, said the takeover would benefit both his company and Saint Honore.

'We always want to broaden our expertise in food services which is a core product category of our Circle K convenience stores in Hong Kong and China. Saint Honore's strong brand value and expertise in the baking business will enhance the business proposition for CR Asia's convenience stores as well as underpinning its China strategy,' Mr Fung said.

CR Asia, which is listed on the Growth Enterprise Market board, directly owned 249 Circle K stores in Hong Kong and 56 in the Pearl River Delta at the end of September. It also had 21 franchised outlets in Macau and Zhuhai.