By Maria Armental
Dollar Tree Inc. plans to sell 330 stores to private-equity firm
Sycamore Partners, addressing regulatory concerns related to its
planned merger with Family Dollar Stores.
The deal is contingent on the completion of the merger.
Financial terms weren't disclosed.
Dollar Tree had disclosed its intention to sell the stores,
which account for about $45.5 million of its operating income, as
part of a regular update of merger talks this month when it
released first-quarter results.
Under the deal with Sycamore Partners, the New York
private-equity firm would operate the stores under the Dollar
Express banner, which Dollar Tree had acquired as part of its 2000
acquisition of Philadelphia-based Dollar Express Inc.
The Dollar Tree-Family Dollar Stores proposed merger follows
months of offers and counter offers from Dollar Tree and Dollar
General Corp., which had first bid for Dollar Tree.
In January, Family Dollar shareholders agreed to Dollar Tree's
lower offer, citing regulatory-approval concerns with Dollar
General's bid.
The combined company, which would bring together the No. 2 and
No. 3 companies in the dollar-store category, would create the
largest company in the sector with more than 13,000 stores that
would continue to operate under both brands.
Dollar Tree sells products for $1 or less and focuses on
suburban markets, while Family Dollar sells more branded consumer
products like detergent and groceries and focuses on urban and
rural markets.
Write to Maria Armental at maria.armental@wsj.com
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