Weston family agrees £6.7bn deal to buy Boots

Canada’s billionaire Weston family has agreed to buy Boots in a deal worth $8.9bn (£6.7bn), according to the BBC. Wittington Investments, the family’s holding company, confirmed on Wednesday that it had agreed to buy the 177-year-old business from US private equity firm Sycamore Partners and the Pessina family. The deal affects a chain of about 1,800 UK stores and 51,000 employees.

Boots acquisition: what the Canadian Weston deal covers

Wittington is buying Boots’ retail and pharmacy operations in the UK and Ireland, Boots Opticians, the No7 Beauty Company and the Thailand and franchised businesses. Sycamore, working with Stefano Pessina and his family, will keep Farmacias Benavides in Mexico and Alliance Healthcare Deutschland in Germany, the BBC reported.

Wittington said it is partnering with Toronto-based Fairfax Financial Holdings but will keep operational control. The sources differ on how long Sycamore has owned the business: the Independent reported that the deal comes about twelve months after Sycamore took control by buying Walgreens Boots Alliance, while the BBC puts Sycamore’s ownership at 18 months. London Loves Business reported that Pessina and his wife Ornella Barra still held a 44 per cent stake.

Galen Weston, chairman of Wittington, will become chairman of Boots. He said: “We see a meaningful opportunity to make a great business even better through stable long-term ownership, further capital investment, and the renewed operating focus required to serve customers with excellence for generations to come.”

What changes for customers, stores and jobs

None of the sources reports any planned change for shoppers or patients. The Weston Mercury said there was no indication of store closures or job losses in Somerset, where Boots has 22 stores, and that the business was expected to carry on trading as normal while the deal progresses. The sources do not mention prescription services specifically.

Retail expert Catherine Shuttleworth, chief executive of savvy marketing, told the BBC shoppers were unlikely to see much change in the coming months. She said what they can “expect over time is an improved shopping experience as the new owners invest in the business”. The BBC reported that Weston has signalled shop upgrades and an expansion of healthcare services, which already include vaccines, eye tests and hearing tests.

Boots has closed hundreds of branches in recent years, and BusinessCloud reported that growing debt and a shift to cheaper online products had added to its challenges. Alex Baldock, the recently appointed chief executive, said the opportunity ahead was “even greater” than past success.

The price in context and what happens next

Boots’ latest accounts, as reported by London Loves Business, showed revenue up 3.2% to £7.5bn and pre-tax profit up 25% to £337m. As a rough guide, £6.7bn is about 20 times that profit and a little under 90% of annual sales. That is our own arithmetic, and the deal covers specific businesses, so the accounts may not match it exactly.

Nothing changes at once. The agreement has been announced, regulatory approvals must follow, and completion is expected in the first quarter of 2027, between 1 January and 31 March. Until then Boots stays under its current owners and continues to trade as usual.

Your questions answered

Who is buying Boots pharmacy?

Wittington Investments, the holding company of Canada’s Weston family, has agreed to buy it. It is working with Fairfax Financial Holdings, but Wittington will have operational control.

How much has Weston agreed to pay for Boots?

The deal is worth $8.9bn, or £6.7bn. It covers Boots’ UK and Ireland retail operations, Boots Opticians, No7 Beauty Company and the Thailand and franchised businesses.

What happens to Boots after the Weston takeover?

Boots keeps trading as normal until completion, expected in early 2027. Galen Weston becomes chairman and has pointed to shop upgrades and more healthcare services, but the sources give no details of closures or job changes.