Boots is now operating as a “standalone company” following the acquisition of its parent company Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) by private equity firm Sycamore Partners.
Sycamore Partners has completed its deal to buy the UK health and beauty retail chain in partnership with Chairman of Boots, Stefano Pessina, and his family
Pessina and his family have reinvested 100% of their interests in The Boots Group.
The Boots Group will continue to be led by CEO Ornella Barra and be registered and headquartered in the UK, with senior leaders continuing in their existing roles.
Anthony Hemmerdinger will continue to serve as SVP and Managing Director of Boots UK & Ireland (UK&I).
“I am hugely proud of the business that we have created and excited about this new step under new ownership,” said Barra.
“I would like to thank our colleagues across the world that have built this incredible company, and I am honoured to be leading these businesses on the next stage of our journey.
“Sycamore [Partner]’s retail experience and our strong foundation position The Boots Group to deliver against our strategy of being a leader in our markets and the communities we serve.”
The Boots Group comprises the former international businesses of WBA, which includes Boots UK&I, Boots Opticians, No7 Beauty Company, Boots retail pharmacies in Thailand and international franchise retail operations.
Together with Farmacias Benavides in Mexico, Alliance Healthcare in Germany and existing retail investments in China.
Sycamore Partners is a firm focused on retail, consumer and distribution-related investments.
Stefan Kaluzny, Sycamore’s Managing Director, said The Boots Group is “a remarkable institution with deep roots in its communities around the world.”
He added: “We are excited that, as a healthy, successful standalone company with 17 consecutive quarters of like-for-like growth, The Boots Group will now be free to invest and grow more aggressively into the future.”
Boots is making a play to maintain its position as a go-to beauty retailer in the UK as the competition heats up.
Boots is set to debut its first-ever fragrance-only boutique this autumn after reporting “solid growth” in its perfume sales.
The move is part of the company’s ongoing investment in its store portfolio, while also funding new own-brand launches for growth, which combine beauty and wellness.
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