Acquisition of 51 shops to fuel expansion
Entertainment specialist Game is to buy 51 stores in France to accelerate its growth there.

The stores are being acquired from the administrators of bookseller Maxilivres for£4.1 million and the deal will be effective January 1 next year.

After the purchase is complete, it is expected to take three to six months to re-open the shops under the Game fascia. The estimated cost of refitting the 51 stores is£5 million and Game will retain the existing 132 store staff.

Seymour Pierce analyst Richard Ratner said: 'For the whole of 2008, the stores are expected to make a trading profit. We look for sales of£12 million next year.'

Game chief executive Lisa Morgan said: 'At a cost of about£180,000 a store, this is an innovative and efficient way of rapidly expanding our portfolio in France.

'It gives further momentum to our European expansion strategy and ensures that we will have more than 150 stores trading in France in 2007. This demonstrates our ongoing commitment to strengthening our market leading position within Europe.'

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