The Weston family, through Wittington Investments, is close to buying Boots from the private equity owner Sycamore Partners for about £7 billion, according to reports published on 1 October 2026. A deal could be announced as soon as next week but is not finalised, and both Boots and Sycamore declined to comment.
The Wall Street Journal first reported the talks, and City AM, Retail Gazette and others followed on 1 October. Wittington Investments, the Weston family’s investment company, controls the Canadian grocer Loblaw and the pharmacy business Shoppers Drug Mart.
In Britain the family has a majority stake in Primark through Associated British Foods, and owns Fortnum & Mason. It sold Selfridges for £4 billion in 2022. A sale would end speculation about a London stock market flotation of Boots.
Who is buying and who is selling
The seller is Sycamore Partners, the private equity firm that acquired Boots through its purchase of Walgreens Boots Alliance about a year ago. The buyer would be the Canadian arm of the Weston family, operating through Wittington.
Reports value the deal at about £7 billion; one report gives US$9 billion, which Retail Sector converts to about £6.8 billion. The Boots business in the reports covers its UK and Ireland operations, its opticians and the No7 Beauty company, together with pharmacies in Thailand, Mexico and Germany.
Boots in numbers
In the 12 months to August 2025, Boots reported turnover of £7.545 billion, up 3.2%, with comparable sales up 5.8% and digital sales up 18.3%. Pre-tax profit rose 25% to £337 million, and post-tax profit was £261 million, against £211 million a year earlier.
One report puts the UK estate at more than 1,800 stores, and says Boots stocks more than 500 beauty brands and has opened beauty concept stores in London and Bristol, a retail format distinct from the service-led beauty and wellbeing networks recruiting in the UK. Alex Baldock, formerly chief executive of Currys, took over as chief executive on 2 September 2026.
Why the store count carries a caveat
The figure of more than 1,800 stores comes from a single report. The other coverage reviewed does not give a store count, and the latest annual figures are for the year to August 2025.
How the sale reached this point
Sycamore began a sale process earlier in 2026. The Australian pharmacy group Sigma Healthcare held talks and then withdrew over the summer, and in August the Westons lowered an earlier offer, which Sycamore rejected. The firm had also looked at a London listing, including a possible float in 2027, as an alternative.
One report quotes the view that the seller’s valuation and potential buyers’ views “have differed, sometimes by billions of pounds”. Baldock has said of the business: “What this business does every day really matters, helping millions of people live longer, healthier and happier lives.”
What remains unconfirmed
No completion date has been given, and neither side has confirmed the terms. Both Sycamore and Boots declined to comment on the reports. Sycamore is a private equity firm and Wittington is a family investment company, so there is no stock exchange announcement against which the price or the perimeter can be checked.
Until one of the parties publishes a statement, the figures rest on press reports and unnamed sources. The franchise or agency arrangements, if any, that sit within the Boots estate are not described in any of the coverage reviewed, and unlike the brands taking on operators in the UK, Boots publishes no route in for an independent owner.
