Boots’ parent company weighs potential sale of Britain’s largest pharmacy chain

The parent company of Boots, Britain’s largest pharmacy-led health and beauty chain, is reportedly considering putting its UK pharmacies up for sale next year for an estimated £10 billion.

Walgreen Boots Alliance (WBA), the US health group that owns a stake in Boots UK since 2012, is lining up Goldman Sachs to explore a potential sale next year, as reported by Sky News.

When contacted by Pharmacy Business, WBA said that it would not comment on “market speculation”, noting that “Boots is an important part of the Group.”

The company, however, acknowledged that “it is accurate that WBA announced a renewed set of priorities and strategic direction for the Group in October, which includes a more pointed focus on North America and on healthcare.”

“As underlined during the last WBA investor conference, the Group continues to be very pleased with the performance of Boots and the International division as a whole. In line with the Group’s long-term healthcare strategy, Boots UK continues to expand its healthcare offering.

“Furthermore, boots.com continues to grow above expectations having more than doubled sales when compared to pre-pandemic levels.”

Boots has a network of 2,200 stores and employs 55,000 people in the UK.

Speculations about the sale of Boots has augmented in the recent time following its new business focus and sale of its European distribution arm, Alliance Healthcare, in June this year to AmerisourceBergen.