Belgian publisher Rossel enters exclusive talks to acquire Groupe Sud Ouest

Exclusive talks and acquisition terms

Belgian media group Rossel announced on 3 September 2026 that it had entered exclusive negotiations through its subsidiary Rossel France to acquire Groupe Sud Ouest. The proposed transaction involves acquiring the approximately 80% stake held by the Lemoîne family, the descendants of Jacques Lemoîne, who founded the Bordeaux-based daily in 1944. According to a source close to the matter, the takeover is valued at approximately 100 million euros. The decision was approved unanimously by the roughly 50 family shareholders. Both groups stated that they aim to complete the transaction before the end of 2026, following formal consultations with staff representatives.

This project confirms our desire to establish ourselves sustainably in the French media landscape and to continue investing in it. Regional press is the leading media in France. In a deeply transformed and particularly competitive environment, it is essential to give it the means to innovate, invest, and further strengthen its role as a local media outlet.

Creation of France's third-largest regional media group

The combination of Rossel France and Groupe Sud Ouest will establish an entity with annual revenues exceeding 400 million euros. This scale places the merged business as the third-largest regional press group in France, positioned behind SIPA-Ouest-France, which posted 525 million euros in 2025 revenue, and EBRA, which recorded 479 million euros. The combined properties will reach an estimated 3.4 million daily print readers alongside an audience of nearly 230 million monthly digital visits. The deal expands Rossel's footprint from northern and eastern France, where it operates La Voix du Nord and 20 Minutes, to southwestern regions stretching from Charente-Maritime to the Spanish border.

Financial health and recent restructuring at GSO

Although the Sapeso subsidiary publishing the flagship daily Sud Ouest recorded a deficit in 2025, parent company Groupe Sud Ouest has reported positive financial results for ten consecutive years. Diversified activities currently generate 30% of group revenue, including event management company Côte Ouest, audiovisual unit Écrans du Monde, and regional newspapers such as Charente Libre and La République des Pyrénées. However, daily newspaper Sud Ouest, which recorded daily circulation of 164,000 copies in 2025 according to ACPM/OJD, has undergone successive staff reductions. The publication cut 81 positions in 2024 and introduced a plan in 2026 for approximately 50 voluntary departures and non-replacements through 2028 across its 700 employees, 230 of whom are journalists.

It is one of the regional daily press titles that has cut the most from its newsroom, thereby weakening its capacity to renew itself editorially.

Rossel's broader expansion and next steps

Following the transaction, French operations will account for nearly 50% of Rossel's total revenue. Founded in 1887 and owned by the Hurbain family, Rossel has consolidated its position across francophone media, owning Belgian newspapers Le Soir and Sudinfo, holding 50% stakes in L'Echo and RTL Belgium, and completing a merger with the IPM group. Union representatives at Groupe Sud Ouest were informed of the exclusive talks ahead of an extraordinary social and economic committee meeting scheduled for Monday, 7 September 2026. Trade unions noted that the acquisition did not come as a surprise given previous restructuring discussions.