Green light to the takeover of 95 Maxi Toys stores by Fijace (King Jouet group), subject to the divestiture of 3 stores

On 29 July 2020, Fijace and its subsidiary New MT notified the Autorité de la concurrence of their plan to acquire 95 points of sale operated under the Maxi Toys brand in France.

As part of its analysis, the Autorité examined whether, locally, the acquisition of these Maxi Toys stores by Fijace was likely to restrict competition in the catchment areas in which King Jouet stores are also present.

The Autorité noted that, in almost all areas, consumers will continue to benefit from sufficient alternative offers to those of King Jouet and Maxi Toys so that the new entity will not be encouraged to increase the price of the items sold or to degrade the quality of the products sold in its stores but it nonetheless identified competitive risks in the catchment areas of the Maxi Toys or King Jouet stores located in the Meurthe-et Moselle, Isère and Var departements.

In these areas, the transaction was likely to lessen competitive activity and risked leading to price increases or impoverishing the diversity of the offer to the detriment of the consumer, given the lack of sufficient and comparable alternatives.

In order to address these competition concerns, New MT and Fijace have committed to divest, to one or more competitors, three Maxi Toys stores located in Mont-Saint-Martin (54), Cosnes et Romain (54), Arandon Passins (38), Tignieu-Jameyzieu (38), Brignoles (83) and Saint Maximin la Sainte Baume (83).