Karstadt-Quelle Moves On Rewe Joint Venture

German department store operator Karstadt-Quelle is going ahead with its planned joint venture with German grocery retailer Rewe. Under the deal, Rewe will operate the grocery sections in 72 Karstadt stores. Previously, Rewe's competitor Edeka handled grocery deliveries to Karstadt. The new operating company to be set up under the deal will be 74.9 percent owned by Karstadt-Quelle and 25.1 percent by Rewe, and aims to have an annual turnover of €500 million. The joint venture is still subject to approval by the federal anti-trust authorities. "We assume that we will have their approval within four to eight weeks," a Karstadt spokesperson told DPA news agency.