Slovak billionaire Ivan Kmotrík bought the Czech tobacco store chain Valmont for CZK 600m. Valmont ranks third among tobacco store chains in the Czech Republic. Kmotrík competed against other four bidders and won by offering the highest price. The transaction was already approved by the Antimonopoly office. Kmotrík will take over Valmont through his CG Tabák company. Valmont operates a network of 112 stores and reported revenues of CZK 1.5 bn in 2015. CG Tabák already operates 52 stores in the Czech Republic. Lagardere Travel Retail, operating 168 stores branded as Relay and Inmedio, is number two on the market, while Geco leads the sector with 260 shops, 10 wholesale stores and an annual turnover of CZK 30bn.
