Alimentation Couche-Tard, Inc. of Canada, the parent company of the Circle K convenience store banner, will acquire the GetGo Café+ markets chain from Giant Eagle, Inc.  GetGo operates 250 convenience stores with fueling locations in Ohio, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Indiana. GetGo operates both open-store configuration and kiosks with made-to-order foods.

Brian Hannasch, President and CEO of Couche-Tard, stated, “We are excited to welcome GetGo into the Couche-Tard family.  We have deep respect for its management and people and loyalty program.  We look forward to growing together as we learn from and continue the innovative approaches of GetGo to serving local customers.”

In a related but separate announcement, Couche-Tard has made an offer for Seven & i Holdings in Japan that operates a total of 85,000 stores functioning under the 7-11 banner.  Currently, Couche-Tard operates 16,000 stores in North America and Europe compared to the combined holdings of 85,000 stores operated by Seven & i Holdings in Asia and the U.S.

This the second attempt by Couche-Tard to acquire the holding company of 7-11 in Japan that has traditionally been resistant to foreign takeovers.

It is possible that the transaction even if it were to be approved by authorities in Japan would raise questions of oligopoly in the U.S. especially with the current orientation of the FTC.