Canada’s Weston family buys Boots for $8.9bn

The Canadian family that once owned Selfridges department store has acquired the UK pharmacy and beauty retailer Boots for $8.9 billion. Wittington Investments, the holding company of the Weston family, which controls Loblaws and Drugmart in Canada, will own Boots' UK and Irish retail operations, along with optician chain No7 and a franchise in Thailand.

The Nottingham-based chain, with 1,800 stores and employing 50,000 people, is also backed by investment firm Fairfax. Galen Weston, chair of Wittington and likely to become chair of Boots, emphasized the rich heritage and vital role of Boots in everyday life across the UK and Ireland. The deal, which sees Boots' long-term backers Stefano Pessina and Sycamore Partners exit, requires regulatory approval and is expected to close in the first quarter of 2027.

Pessina, who took Boots private in 2007, expressed delight at passing on a thriving Boots to strong and reliable owners who understand its heritage. Pessina will retain ownership of Boots' interests in Mexican pharmacy chain Farmacias Benavides and German drug distributor Alliance Healthcare Deutschland.