Grupo Éxito also known as Almacenes Éxito S.A. is a South Americanretail company. It operates 2,606 stores in South America. The stores sell a wide range of food and non food products. Though originally a textiles maker and seller recent acquisitions have further diversified the business making it a major grocer. At its hypermarkets it sells both packaged foods and perishables in addition to department store type products ranging from electronics to furniture. Almacenes is Colombia's largest supermarket chain.
History
Grupo Éxito traces its origins to a Medellín, Colombia family run textile business founded in 1949 by Gustavo Toro Quintero. Éxito is the Spanish word for success. In 1972 it transitioned into a hypermarket when it added supermarket products and in 1974 it began adding more locations. Six years later a flagship store was opened in Bogotá, Colombia. In 1994 when there were four major locations, it went public on the Medellín and Bogotá stock exchanges but it didn't become a leading retailer until 1998. By then the company had further diversified its business, offering services related to eye care and travel. The beginning of the 21st century was marked by an acquisitions spree starting with an 80% interest in Venezuelan hypermarket operator Cativen. By year end 2010 Groupe Casino owned 53.89% of Almacenes Éxito. -Merged with Cadenalco in 2001. -Became associated with textiles and apparel company Didetexco in 2009
Acquisitions spree in Uruguay and Argentina
In the summer of 2011, Almacenes Éxito acquired the Devoto and Disco chains in Uruguay, for US $746 million, as part of its expansion plan in Latin America. In July 2015, it completed the takeover of 100% of the Argentine chain Hipermercados Libertad and 50% of the Brazilian group Pão de Açúcar.
Envigado shopping center
On October 5, 2018, Grupo Éxito opened the Viva Envigado shopping center, which with 260,000 m² is the second largest shopping center in Colombia after Centro Mayor, Calima, Mayorca Mega Plaza, Plaza Central and Santafé
Venezuela
Cativen is a venezuelan supermarket chain founded on March 23, 1995. It became affiliated with Grupo Exito in 2004 when Groupe Casino acquired 80% of Cativen's shares. At the time Almacenes Exito was also operating a number of its own stores in the country. n November 25, 2010, the Government of Venezuela expropriated several Éxito supermarkets citing price gauging, hoarding of supplies, and breaching the Law for the Defense of Persons in Access to Goods and Services. Subsequently, it bought the shares of the French group Casino, which owned 61.7% of Cativen's shares, and nationalized the remaining six Éxito supermarkets in the country. The Venezuelan government changed the name of the acquired cativan supermarkets to Bicentennial Supplies.
Subsidiaries/Divisions
Éxito - Operates hypermarkets throughout Colombia.
Carulla - Markets products under the brand names Vivero, Carulla. Vivero has more of a department store format.
Just over 56% of company shares are held by Groupe Casino. The rest are with The Antioqueño Business Group & pension funds, 4% by ADR's, roughly 20% belongs toinstitutional investors and banks.
