The Kaprain group of billionaire Karel Pražák is buying the DIY store chain Uni Hobby. According to Novinky.cz, Kaprain is buying the company Uni Hobby and also the company UH Stores. The businessman Jiří Šimáně, whose Unimex Group owned the chain, is leaving the deal.
Subject of the sale
Two companies are the subject of the sale. Uni Hobby operates the stores, while UH Stores, according to the Úřad pro ochranu hospodářské soutěže, is to be created by splitting Unimex Group and will receive the properties in which Uni Hobby operates its hobby markets.
Assessment by the authority
The Úřad pro ochranu hospodářské soutěže stated that the concentration mainly concerns the retail sale of DIY goods, for example timber, electrical materials, paints, varnishes, building supplies, tools, sanitary goods, and garden and car accessories. It is assessing the deal in a simplified procedure and is to issue a decision within 20 days.
Context
Hospodářské noviny report that a few weeks ago Šimáně completed the sale of the airline Smartwings to the Turkish group Pegasus Airlines. According to the daily, the deal was officially completed on 1 October and, according to earlier reports, was worth 3.8 billion crowns.
Chronology
- — The Kaprain group of billionaire Karel Pražák is buying the DIY store chain Uni Hobby, from which the businessman Jiří Šimáně is thus withdrawing. → Novinky.cz Hospodářské noviny
Sources
- Novinky.cz — 22 October 2026
- Hospodářské noviny — 22 October 2026