The Commerce Commission has received an application from Bledisloe New Zealand Limited seeking clearance to acquire the business and assets of Cremation Society of Canterbury Limited and Harewood Memorial Gardens & Crematorium Limited (the Vendors).
The Commerce Commission has received an application from Bledisloe New Zealand Limited seeking clearance to acquire the business and assets of Cremation Society of Canterbury Limited and Harewood Memorial Gardens & Crematorium Limited (the Vendors).
Bledisloe owns and operates a number of funeral, embalming, and cremation services businesses throughout New Zealand. In the Christchurch region, Bledisloe operates John Rhind Funeral Directors, Academy Funeral Services, and G Barrell & Sons – Simplicity Funerals, but does not currently provide any cremation services in Christchurch.
The Vendors own and operate the Harewood Memorial and Crematorium as well as the Woodlawn Memorial Gardens and Crematorium, at which they provide cremation, interment of ashes and memorial services.
A public version of the application will be available shortly on the Clearances Register.
Background
Assessing an application for a merger or acquisition
When considering a proposed merger, the Commission must decide whether the competition that is lost in a market when two businesses merge is substantial. We will give clearance to a proposed merger only if we are satisfied that the merger is unlikely to have the effect of substantially lessening competition in a market.
