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Case No COMP/M.6115 - STEINHOFF/ CONFORAMA

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REGULATION (EC) No 139/2004 MERGER PROCEDURE

Article 6(1)(b) NON-OPPOSITION Date: 07/03/2011

In electronic form on the EUR-Lex website under document number 32011M6115

Office for Publications of the European Union L-2985 Luxembourg

EUROPEAN COMMISSION

Brussels, 7.3.2011 SG-Greffe(2011) D/3564 C(2011) 1621 final

PUBLIC VERSION

MERGER PROCEDURE ARTICLE 6(1)(b) DECISION

SIMPLIFIED PROCEDURE

To the notifying party:

Dear Madam(s) and/or Sir(s),

Subject: Case No COMP/M.6115 – STEINHOFF/ CONFORAMA Notification of 03.02.2011 pursuant to Article 4 of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 Publication in the Official Journal of the European Union No C 45, 12.02.2011, p.20

1.On 3 February 2011, the European Commission received notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of the Merger Regulation by which Steinhoff International Holdings Limited (‘Steinhoff’, South Africa) acquires within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) of the Merger Regulation sole control over the Conforama Group (‘Conforama’, France), by way of purchase of shares.

The business activities of the undertakings concerned are:

-for Steinhoff: manufacturing, wholesale and retailing of furniture and household goods, provision of logistics and warehousing services;

1OJ L 24, 29.1.2004, p. 1 ("the Merger Regulation"). With effect from 1 December 2009, the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union ("TFEU") has introduced certain changes, such as the replacement of "Community" by "Union" and "common market" by "internal market". The terminology of the TFEU will be used throughout this decision.

Commission européenne, B-1049 Bruxelles / Europese Commissie, B-1049 Brussel - Belgium. Telephone: (32-2) 299 11 11.

-for Conforama: retailing of furniture, domestic equipment, decoration products, electronic appliances and consumer electronics.

3.After examination of the notification, the European Commission has concluded that the notified operation falls within the scope of the Merger Regulation and of paragraph 5(c) of the Commission Notice on a simplified procedure for treatment of certain concentrations under Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004.

4.For the reasons set out in the Notice on a simplified procedure, the European Commission has decided not to oppose the notified operation and to declare it compatible with the internal market and with the EEA Agreement. This decision is adopted in application of Article 6(1)(b) of the Merger Regulation.

For the Commission (signed) Alexander ITALIANER Director General

2OJ C 56, 5.3.2005, p. 32.

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