# Central Group acquisition of Aeon Thailand

> Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/central-group-acquisition-of-aeon-thailand
> Updated: 2026-08-18T02:41:30.000Z. Sources: 9. Developments: 2.

Central Retail (Central Group) has agreed to acquire the Thai subsidiary of Japanese retailer Aeon Co, including the MaxValu chain of 30 supermarkets. The transaction involves the transfer of full ownership of AEON (Thailand) Ltd and its assets, such as real estate and a ready-meal processing centre, to Central Food Retail (CFR).

Following the acquisition, the MaxValu and MaxValu Tanjai stores will be rebranded as Tops and integrated into CFR’s retail network. This move is expected to add approximately 900,000 customers to Central Group’s grocery footprint. 

Aeon is divesting these non-core overseas operations to concentrate on growth in its home market and shift its strategic focus toward the Vietnamese market. Analysts suggest the deal reflects broader consolidation in the Southeast Asian retail sector driven by margin pressures and rising freight costs.

## Timeline

### 2026-08-18: Aeon sells Thai supermarket business to Central Retail

Aeon is exiting the Thai supermarket market to focus on Vietnam, selling its MaxValu and MaxValu Tanjai chains to Central Retail for conversion into the Tops brand.

3 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/aeon-sells-thai-supermarket-business-to-central-retail

### 2026-08-07: Central Group acquires Aeon's 30 Thai MaxValu supermarkets

Central Group buys Aeon's Thai MaxValu supermarket chain, rebranding the 30 stores as Tops and expanding its grocery market share in Thailand.

6 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/central-group-acquires-aeons-30-thai-maxvalu-supermarkets

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Cite as: Central Group acquisition of Aeon Thailand. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/central-group-acquisition-of-aeon-thailand