Ronen Elad, owner of the Shilav chain, purchased 50% of the shares in the Office Depot

Ronen Elad, owner of the Shilav chain, purchased 50% of the shares in the Office Depot office equipment chain. Elad will pay NIS 25 million for the shares to Rani Zim, the chain's owners. The transaction is made at a company value of NIS 90 million gross (NIS 51 million net, less a debt of NIS 49 million of the company). Negotiations between Elad and Zim were first reported in Calcalist. After the deal, Elad and Zim will each hold 50% of the shares.
It was also learned that this morning the two appointed Sigal Oron, who has been the CEO of the Urban Outfitters brands from the Fox Group for the past four years and before that for 11 years in senior positions at the Toys R Us chain, including four years as CEO.
Oron's goal will be to expand the field of network innovation and increase the network's growth. Zim acquired Office Depot in 2014, first by acquiring 50% of the chain with an investment of NIS 10 million into the company and after a year by acquiring the share of Ronen Levy, who owned the chain, for NIS 20 million. Ernst & Young led the deal.
Office Depot's sales turnover is about NIS 150 million a year and it employs about 350 people. The chain has 41 branches and an equal partnership with Electra Consumer Products in the duty-free store for electrical products and office equipment, as well as in one of the chain's flagship stores in the Ace Mall in front of Eilat. The network has so far been managed by Menashe Zilka, former CEO of Kravitz.
In the previous decade, the chain has accumulated losses that even threatened its existence. It was transferred to the Hamashbir chain from the global Office Depot, and in 2013, when it was about to collapse, it was sold to Ronen Levy, the owners of the amusement park, for only NIS 1.4 million.