Takeover of Boots drugstore chain in jeopardy

Sycamore Partners, the owner of the British drugstore chain Boots, has rejected an offer from the Weston billionaire family after another potential buyer withdrew. Uncertainty about the retailer’s future persists.

Is an IPO back on the table?

According to the British newspaper The Times, investment fund Sycamore Partners has rejected a takeover bid from the Canadian billionaire Weston family, which also holds a stake in Primark owner AB Foods. The prospective buyer reportedly lowered its bid after the publicly traded Australian pharmacy group Sigma Healthcare withdrew from the process.

It is unclear what the future holds for Boots. In June of this year, it was reported that Sycamore Partners—which had initially planned to take Boots public—was in talks with two potential buyers for the retailer, which operates more than 1,800 stores in the UK. An IPO may now be back on the table.