Benjamin Trisk and partners buy CNA

The former CEO of Exclusive Books, Benjamin Trisk, announced his return to the book trade with the surprise acquisition of CNA from Edcon. The news was made public on Tuesday 4 February. The chain’s 167 stores will be purchased lock, stock and barrel by Trisk and consortium Astoria Investments, represented by respected businessman Jan van Niekerk. Astoria will own the majority share. Van Niekerk is the CEO of RECM, an asset management company known for its astute purchases, which includes success stories such as Dischem.

Pictured: Retail giants: Benjamin Trisk and Jan van Niekerk

Central News Agency (CNA) was founded in Johannesburg in 1896 by Michael Davis and Albert Lindbergh as a newspaper delivery service. It soon started publishing newspapers such as The Argus and Cape Times, and was listed on the JSE in 1903. In its heyday in 1995, the group had 350 stores across South Africa and was bought by Wooltru for R500 million in the same year. Edcon acquired the business in 2002 for R130 million, by which time the struggling chain had dwindled to only 130 outlets.

According to Trisk, CNA’s future focus will be on books, stationery, magazines, gifting and education. Electronics, gaming and fast-moving consumer goods (such as sweets and beverages) will be discontinued. As chairman of Nal’ibali, he is passionate about literacy and aims to make CNA the first port of call for children’s books and educational products, including books in African languages.