Schwarz Beteiligungs GmbH (Schwarz Group) is a wholesaler and a multi-format retailer. It operates food stores, supermarkets, hypermarkets and discount stores. Schwarz Group operates a chain of supermarkets and hypermarkets under the banners: Kaufland, Handelshof and Kaufmarkt and discount stores under Lidl brand. It wholesale markets are operated under the trademark of Ruef.
The Schwarz Beteiligungs GmbH is currently the third largest food retail group in Germany. He owns the company Lidl and Kaufland on. After the study, Global Powers of Retailing 2008 the consulting firm Deloitte , the Schwarz group took in a worldwide comparison of the annual revenues of retailers out of business in 2006 to tenth place. The total gross sales in fiscal year 2010/11 to around 60 billion euros have amounted . The owner of the Schwarz Beteiligungs GmbH are Dieter Schwarz GmbH (99.9% stake) and the Black Company Treuhand KG (0.1% share), the latter holds 100% of the voting rights. The headquarters of the Schwarz Group is Neckarsulm .
The Black Group currently (as of 2010) around 10,000 branches (9,000 Lidl stores, including 3,200 in Germany, and around 1000 Kaufland stores, of which 580 in Germany). In the group claims to have branches 20 countries. Online commerce is run by the Black e-commerce, a sister company of Lidl