The Weston family, known for leading major pharmacy and grocery chains in Canada, is expanding its business by acquiring the U.K. drugstore Boots. Wittington Investments, the Weston family holding company, announced on Wednesday that it will buy Boots for $8.9 billion US (approximately $12.7 billion Cdn), including debt, from private equity firm Sycamore Partners.
In addition to Boots’s retail operations in the U.K. and Ireland, Wittington will also gain control over its businesses in Thailand, franchised operations, optical division, and No7 Beauty Company. Toronto-based holding company Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. will collaborate with Wittington on the acquisition, and upon the deal’s completion in the first quarter of 2027, Galen Weston will assume the role of Boots’s chairman. Wittington will have operational control post-closing.
Galen Weston expressed his interest in Boots, highlighting its long-standing presence as one of Britain’s enduring businesses with a trusted reputation and significant influence in the U.K. and Ireland. He sees potential for enhancing the business through long-term ownership, increased capital investment, and a renewed focus on customer service excellence.
Boots, a prominent retailer in Britain, shares similarities with Shoppers Drug Mart, a Canadian pharmacy chain associated with the Weston family. The Westons are renowned in Canada for their contributions to Loblaw Companies Ltd., George Weston Ltd., and ownership of luxury department store Holt Renfrew. They also hold a stake in Associated British Foods, the parent company of value retailer Primark and renowned brands like Twinings tea, Mazola oils, Mazzetti vinegars, Ovaltine, and Fleischmann’s yeast.
It remains uncertain if this acquisition will bring Boots back to Canada, where it operated in the past. A return of Boots to Canada could potentially create competition with Shoppers Drug Mart, which operates around 1,350 stores across the country.
The deal includes Sycamore Partners, along with Stefano Pessina and his family, retaining ownership of The Boots Group’s interests in Farmacias Benavides and Alliance Healthcare Deutschland. Sycamore’s managing director, Stefan Kaluzny, praised the work done by Boots’s management team and over 50,000 employees, emphasizing the company’s bright future ahead.