The press service of KazanExpress responded to a question

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PAO Magnit is completing the deal to purchase OOO KazanExpress. It will include the entire infrastructure of the marketplace: the technological platform, order pick-up points (OPP), warehouses, vehicle fleet, and intellectual property. In addition, Magnit will receive an established pool of 12 thousand Russian marketplace sellers. Within the Magnit group of companies, KazanExpress will change its name and will develop under the Magnit Market brand.

from a ComNews correspondent armenia whatsapp resource about the amount of the deal by saying that this information is not being disclosed.

The Magnit chain has more than 28 thousand stores located in 4,183 settlements of the Russian Federation and Uzbekistan. Magnit manages a logistics system comprising 45 distribution centers, an automated inventory management system and a fleet of more than 5,000 vehicles. Magnit's revenue for the first half of 2023 amounted to RUB 1,229 billion, EBITDA - RUB 82 billion.

According to the financial statements of KazanExpress, the company's revenue in 2021 was RUB 726 million, and in 2022 - RUB 2.8 billion. According to Forbes, KazanExpress is valued at $180 million.

According to the estimates of Infoline LLC (INFOline information and consulting agency), at the end of 2022, KazanExpress was in fifth place among marketplaces by the number of orders, the service audience exceeded 5 million people per month. The network of KazanExpress order pick-up points has more than 500 points in 120 cities.

Director of e-commerce for the Magnit retail chain, Gyuvanch Donmez, noted that the availability of infrastructure - dozens of distribution centers, a fleet of thousands of trucks and a network of 28,000 stores, on the basis of which pick-up points will be organized - will allow the company to quickly increase its presence in the market segment and become one of the leaders in e-commerce in Russia.

Sergey Grechin, CEO of Alibaba.com (RU) LLC (AliExpress Russia), said that after the sale (in 2021, AliExpress Russia invested in KazanExpress, receiving 50.1% in it, and according to data as of February 3, 2023 - 56.27%), AliExpress Russia, being the largest marketplace for purchasing goods from other countries, will focus on developing the cross-border business and will develop other areas.

The press service of the Federal Antimonopoly Service told a ComNews correspondent that the department has not yet received a petition to approve the deal. The press service of KazanExpress responded that the documents on this part are being processed.

Artem Tuzov, director of the corporate finance department at IVA Partners, believes that such a deal for Magnit is an alternative to creating a marketplace from scratch, allowing it to save time, money on development and maintenance, and hiring personnel.

"The transaction amount could be high. Including $180 million, as Forbes believed. The project's revenue says nothing about the GMV of the goods that passed through it, if the revenue is generated by the commission from sellers, plus the growth rate in 2023 is unknown. It can be assumed that KazanExpress in 2023 in terms of revenue approached 5-10 billion rubles and reached GMV of 100-200 billion rubles (Gross Merchandise Value, or gross cost of goods - ComNews note ). Then the sale for 1GMV is quite marketable," noted Artem Tuzov.

He added that KazanExpress already occupied the fifth place among all marketplaces in the Russian Federation, therefore, using the warehouse and logistics capabilities of Magnit, as well as the product variety available in Magnit, KazanExpress can successfully fight for the third place. However, according to Artem Tuzov, it will not be possible to displace Wildberries and Ozon from the first places: the gap is too large.

"The acquisition of the KazanExpress marketplace by Magnit is an example of the development of the largest players in domestic retail not only through the opening of new stores, but also through the acquisition of established regional networks, including services that complement the traditional retail business. The purchase of the marketplace will help Magnit accelerate the development of the online sales channel," added Anna Builakova, an analyst at FG Finam.