Boots owner steps up talks with potential buyers for chain

Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA), the owner of Boots, has reportedly stepped up efforts to secure a potential buyer for the high street chain.

According to Bloomberg, the US company is now working with advisers to hold early discussions with potential bidders.

Sources added that no formal sale process for the retailer, which is said to be worth around £7m, has begun.

In 2022, WBA pulled plans to sell Boots after the global financial markets suffered “unexpected and dramatic change”. 

At the time, the group said that as a result of market instability “severely impacting financing availability’, no third party was able to make an offer that “adequately reflects the high potential value of Boots and No7 Beauty Company”.

Since then, however, interest in selling the retailer has been revived, and last December it was reported that WBA was eyeing an initial public offering (IPO) on the London Stock Exchange for Boots after revisiting plans to offload the pharmacy chain.

It is understood that any sale of Boots would be subject to approval from ministers and regulators, as the company still plays a big role in delivering public healthcare services across Britain.

WBA and Boots declined to comment.