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Colruyt Group increases its stake in Smartmat NV to 100%   

Colruyt Group increases its stake in Smartmat NV to 100%   

Tuesday, April 1, 2025

Since February 2022, Colruyt Group has held a 41,36% stake in Smartmat NV (“Smartmat”), a company specialising in meal boxes under the Foodbag brand. In April 2025, Colruyt Group NV will increase its interest further to 100% by acquiring the 41,36% stake currently held by Korys Investments NV (“Korys”) and the final 17,28% interest held by the remaining founders.  

Foodbag, a leader in the Belgian fresh food e-commerce 

Smartmat is a prominent Belgian player in the online food market. The company mainly specialises in the composition and delivery of meal boxes under the brand name Foodbag. The Belgian-based Foodbag delivers meal boxes across Belgium every week, distinguishing itself through quality, flexibility and sustainability. Foodbag sources fresh ingredients from over 100 local suppliers and ensures home delivery through its own delivery drives. Every week, customers can flexibly choose from 35 dishes, without the need for a subscription. The diverse menu caters to all tastes, featuring Belgian-inspired meals, vegetarian and vegan options, as well as new flavours and international cuisines. In addition to home delivery, meal boxes can also be picked up at more than 100 Collect&Go collection points, while 'one meal' kits are being sold in Okay stores; Foodbag differentiates itself through its omnichannel strategy.  

Driven by significant growth in recent years – in terms of both customer base and the number of orders per customer – Foodbag has outpaced the market and established itself as a leader in fresh food e-commerce, with substantial growth potential ahead. In the 2024 financial year, Smartmat recorded a revenue of approximately EUR 50 million and an EBITDA margin of more than 10%. 

Jessie Maras, CEO of Foodbag: "Together with our shareholders, we have successfully expanded and strengthened our brand in recent years, sharing knowledge and expertise while preserving and further developing our unique identity. After the full acquisition of our company by Colruyt Group, we will continue to collaborate closely while forging ahead with our growth strategy autonomously."  

Jessie Maras is CEO of Foodbag since early 2025. Former CEO and co-founder of Foodbag, Stéphane Ronse, is a director at Smartmat and remains closely involved in the operations. 

Further expanding market leadership in the online food sector while continuing to focus on enhancing customer convenience 

This additional investment in Smartmat enables Colruyt Group to further expand and strengthen its position in the online food market. Together, each harnessing their respective strengths, Colruyt Group and Smartmat remain committed to meeting the evolving customer needs, such as the demand for greater convenience and the right offering at the right moment. Both share the same value-driven vision on local sourcing, the focus on seasonal products and the commitment to promoting sustainable packaging, avoiding food waste and providing customer-oriented services.  

The transaction 

In April 2025 Colruyt Group will increase its stake in Smartmat NV from 41,36% to 100% by acquiring the remaining shares currently held by Korys and the remaining founders.  

As a result of this transaction, Colruyt Group's statement of cash flows will include a cash outflow of approximately EUR 50 million in the 2025/26 financial year. Arm's length principles were applied for the valuation. 

At the time of the initial transaction in February 2022, in which Colruyt Group acquired 41,36% of the shares of Smartmat NV, the requisite measures had been taken in the context of the conflict of interest rules. In addition, call and put options were established, which are now being exercised.  

For the public announcement in accordance with article 7:97, §4/1 of the Belgian Code on Companies and Associations (CCA) regarding the increase of the stake in Smartmat NV, we refer to the annex to the press release of 4 February 2022. 

Up until the financial year 2024/25, Smartmat NV was accounted for in Colruyt Group's consolidated figures using the equity method. As a result of this transaction, Smartmat NV will be fully consolidated as from the beginning of April 2025.