Boots owner scours London's list of major chains

Last week, travel giant Tui became the latest major company to consider exiting the London Stock Exchange. Photo: Peter Nicholls/REUTERS

The listing of Boots would be one of the biggest in recent years in London and would represent a major upheaval for UK markets amid fears it would slide down the rankings of global financial centres.

Last Last week, the latest to give a signal was travel giant Tui. It was considering leaving the London Stock Exchange after a series of high-profile exits, including building materials company CRH and plumbing equipment supplier Ferguson.

Financial Conduct Authority data released last week showed the number of listings on the London Stock Exchange. The London Stock Exchange is at its lowest level in at least six years.

Only 56 companies applied to list their shares on the LSE main market between January and November 23 this year. This is significantly lower than in 2021, when 125 companies submitted applications.

Walgreens previously considered selling Boots but shelved the plan last year, citing «unexpected and dramatic changes» in financial markets. Walgreens has been in talks with buyout fund Apollo, Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani, CVC and Bain.

In recent months, Walgreens management has been forced to sharpen the company's U.S. focus by spinning off its international operations. In October, the company named healthcare industry veteran Tim Wentworth as its new chief executive.

Last month, Walgreens announced it was cutting costs from its Americas operations by $1 billion. The company is also reducing the number of stores in the UK. As of June, the company had 2,200 stores across the UK, and Walgreens wants to cut that number to 1,900. It is targeting stores too close together.

The US healthcare giant reported a net loss of $3.1 billion in its latest fiscal year, down from $5.5 billion a year earlier, largely due to allegations of lawsuits and litigation over opioids.

The UK performance was stronger, but Boots reported retail sales growth of 11.7% in the fourth quarter. Boots sales rose 12.5% ​​in the year to the end of August.

The retailer said this was driven by increased footfall in shopping centers and travel stores, despite pressure on the cost of living. customers.

Boots was founded in 1849 by John Booth as a family business. The first store was opened in Nottingham, selling medicinal herbs to the poor who could not afford traditional medicines.

It has since paved the way to the UK high street, opening the first and last 24-hour pharmacy in 1925 in its store in Piccadilly Circus and becoming one of the first companies to offer self-service shopping in 1951. As of June this year, it had 2,200 stores across the UK, but said it plans to cut that number to 1,900 by next summer.