Argos owner to sell Dutch home shopping business

GUS increased the focus of its retail arm on Argos and Homebase today by agreeing to sell a business it has owned for more than 40 years.

The disposal of Dutch home shopping operation Wehkamp for £265m (€389m) follows the end of its ownership of South African retailer Lewis and comes ahead of the company’s planned sale of its 66% stake in fashion chain Burberry.

GUS chief executive John Peace said: “This sale leaves Argos Retail Group focused solely on general merchandise retailing in the UK and Ireland.”

The group recently said it was braced for another tough year at its core retail business, after seeing sales decline at both Argos and Homebase.

Like-for-like sales fell 3% at catalogue arm Argos in the half-year to September 30, while the figure for Homebase was 4% lower in the period since the end of February.

Today’s deal with private equity firm Industri Kapital involves the leading home shopping brand in Holland with an estimated 15% share of the market and sales of £222m (€325.6m) in the year to March 31.

It was set up in 1952 and came under its present ownership a decade later.

Mr Peace added: “We believe that the transaction is in the best interests of GUS and of the customers and employees of Wehkamp and we wish them well for the future.”

The deal is expected to be completed in December, subject to European Union regulatory approval.

Working out of offices in London, Stockholm, Hamburg and Oslo, Industri Kapital has acquired 55 companies since 1989 with a current portfolio featuring 25 companies across Europe.