An Indian billionaire and U.S private equity firm are planning a takeover bid for UK high street retailer Boots.
Mukesh Ambani is one of India's richest men and is reportedly working with the U.S private equity firm Apollo Global Management to buy Boots. This comes after the Boots owner announced a review of the UK business with a May 16 deadline for final bids, which could put the retailer up for sale.
The new deal would have Boots undergo expansion into India, the Middle East and Southeast Asia. Business in the UK will also be set to grow with Boots being valued at £6 billion.
Read more: Boots could be taken over by eighth richest man on earth as Mukesh Ambani in rumoured bid
Reliance Industries, where Ambani is a chairman, will own stakes in Boots alongside Apollo Global Management if the deal goes through.
Who owns Boots?
Boots UK is part of the Retail Pharmacy International Division of Walgreens Boots Alliance. Alliance Boots was bought by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and Stefano Pessina in 2007 and relocated to Switzerland, making the company private.
Boots owner, Walgreens Boots Alliance is the first global pharmacy-led, health and wellbeing enterprise. Boots the chemist was found by John Boot of Nottinghamshire in 1849 and is now a retail and pharmacy chain in countries including Norway, the Netherlands, Italy, Ireland, Thailand and Indonesia.
The British health and beauty retailer has subsidiary companies including Boots Opticians, Mothercare, Alliance Healthcare, Wiggly-Amps Limited, Blyth Pharmacy Limited, Health Team Limited and Boots London. Boots UK headquarters are based in Nottingham.
History of Boots in Nottingham
Boots founder John Boot opened up a small herbalist store in Goose Gate in 1849, creating the first home for the Boots brand. In 1870, John's widow Mary Boot, and his son Jesse began trading as M & J Boot, Herbalists.
Jesse was born in 1850 and left school at the age of 13 to help support his mother full time. He was rewarded with the partnership in the family company and later took sole control of the business in 1877.
Boots & Company Limited formed in 1883. A year later, the first qualified chemist was hired and able to provide services at reduced prices in comparison to the other chemists in Nottingham.
Boots manufacturing expanded into a factory and several other properties on Island Street in Nottingham in 1885. The business was renamed Boots Pure Drug Company Limited in 1888.
A flagship department style store opened on Pelham Street in Nottingham in 1892 - this became the model for future Boots stores. In 1913, the first free educational provision was established for employees. This came as an offer of evening classes ran in partnership with Nottingham’s Education Committee and by 1920, this opportunity was extended.
The Boots UK Support Office is located in Beeston, Nottingham after being purchased in 1927. Ibuprofen was actually invented on the Beeston site, and brands including No7 are still developed and manufactured there to this day.foundedwas
Who is Mukesh Ambani?
Ambani is the largest shareholder, chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries. It is a Fortune Global 500 company and is India's most valuable company by market value.
Ambani is also the eighth richest person in the world with a net worth of $96.9 billion, which is £77.9 billion. The 65-year-old was born in Yemen in April 1957.
His late father, Dhirubhai, founded the textile manufacturer that transformed into Reliance Industries. Ambani is married to philanthropist and businesswoman Nita Ambani, 58, who founded the Reliance Foundation and Dhirubhai Ambani International School, and is also a director at Reliance Industries.
The Ambani family already own UK assets worth tens of millions of pounds.
