The Issa brothers have hosted early-stage discussions over the possibility of adding health and beauty retailer Boots to their ever-expanding portfolio.
Walgreens Boots Alliance, the retail chain’s owners has launched a strategic review of the chemist chain. Last week, Bain Capital and CVC Capital Parnters placed a joint bid for Boots, which could be worth as much as £10bn.
Interest in a Boots bid comes after the billionaire grocery and petrol station tycoons sealed a £6.8bn takeover of Big 4 grocer Asda in 2020. The move saw them borrow £3.5bn to finance the transaction with a plan to sell Asda’s petrol stations to their other company, EG Group.
In December, Goldman Sachs was lined up as an adviser to explore potential options during the strategic review of the chain. One of these options was the sale of Boots and an auction of the retailer is set to begin in the coming weeks, with other grocery giants expected to be interest in the vast store network.
