Cookie Consent by Free Privacy Policy Generator
7.5 C
Oslo
Friday, March 29, 2024

Popular bakeries join forces

Two of Oslo’s most trendy and popular bakery chains, United Bakeries and Åpent Bakeri, think they have a new recipe for success. Instead of competing against each other, writes newspaper Dagens Næringsliv (DN), they’ve cooked up a new deal to cooperate.

It calls for a merger between the two, with United Bakeries selling five of its outlets to newcomer Espresso House of Sweden. Nearly all of United Bakeries’ outlets will disappear with the exception of its main location on Karl Johans Gate in the heart of Oslo.

“We’ve been stealing customers from one another, and it hasn’t been easy operating in the same (market) segment,” Remi Goulignac, chief of United Bakeries, told DN. He said he and his colleagues had been trying to strike a deal with Åpent Bakeri for the past three years. “We finally came to agreement,” he said.

The two chains have several outlets near one another. Now Åpent Bakeri will carry on with its locations, offering up to 20 of United’s products in its bakery-cafés. United, which also sells bread through major grocery store chains in Norway, now owns 44.5 percent of the shares in Åpent Bakeri.

The deal also aids the expansion of Espresso House in Norway, which will take over United’s locations on Bogstadveien and Parkveien in Oslo and at Bislett, Vinderen and CC Vest. “I think all participants have done a good deal here,” Adriano Capoferro of Espresso House, who also founded the high-end convenience store chain Deli de Luca, told DN.

No prices were revealed. DN reported, though, that United Bakeries reported operating revenues of NOK 74 million and a pre-tax loss of NOK 1 million in 2012, while Åpent Bakeri reported revenues of NOK 59 million and a pre-tax profit of nearly NOK 2.3 million.

newsinenglish.no staff

LATEST STORIES

FOR THE RECORD

For more news on Arctic developments.

MOST READ THIS WEEK

Donate

If you like what we’re doing, please consider a donation. It’s easy using PayPal, or our Norway bank account. READ MORE