The private equity firm Sycamore Partners is reportedly finalizing a $9bn (£7bn) deal to sell the pharmacy giant Boots to the Canadian branch of the billionaire Weston family. Sycamore, which acquired the wider Walgreens Boots Alliance for $23.7bn in 2025, has engaged in advanced negotiations with the family, with a formal agreement potentially arriving as early as next week.
A successful acquisition would signify a major return for the Canadian Westons to the UK high street, following their 2022 divestment of the Selfridges department store chain for £4bn. The Canadian branch is already well-established in the retail and pharmaceutical sectors as the owners of Loblaws and Shoppers Drug Mart. Their counterparts in the UK maintain different investment interests, most notably holding a majority stake in Primark through Associated British Foods.
This pending sale follows a failed attempt by Sycamore earlier this summer to divest Boots to the Australian group Sigma Healthcare, a deal that would have valued the business at $10bn. Since its 2025 takeover, Sycamore has actively restructured the Walgreens Boots Alliance into five independent entities, with the sale of the pharmacy chain representing a significant step in their divestment strategy.
Boots holds a storied history dating back to its 1849 founding in Nottingham by John Boot. The company has undergone numerous ownership changes over the last two decades, including a 2006 merger with Alliance Unichem, a 2007 takeover by KKR, and a subsequent acquisition by Walgreens that began with a 45% stake in 2012 before finalizing in 2014. Boots, which was founded in Nottingham in 1849 by John Boot, has changed hands several times in the past 20 years.
Currently, the retailer operates 1,800 UK stores and provides employment for 51,000 staff, including 6,000 workers at its Beeston headquarters near Nottingham. Financial performance remains robust, with the company reporting a 3.2% revenue increase to £7.5bn for the year ending August 2025. Pre-tax profits grew by 25% to £337m during the same period, bolstered by strong consumer demand for beauty products and weight-loss medications. Boots – which has 1,800 stores across the UK – employs about 51,000 people, including about 6,000 at its headquarters in Beeston, three miles south-west of Nottingham.
