Boots to be acquired by Canadian investors

Boots retail operations in the UK and Ireland will be acquired by Wittington Investments, the holding company of the Weston family based in Canada, it has been announced.

The Weston group, via another holding company Loblaw Companies, already owns Shoppers Drug Mart, Canada’s largest pharmacy, health and beauty business. It operates more than 1,000 stores across the country.

The deal to buy Boots and its associated businesses was reached for US$8.9bn (£6.7bn), including assumed debt, with Stefano Pessina and his family — who acquired Boots in 2006 and still hold non-executive roles — and private equity firm Sycamore Partners, which became the majority owner in 2025.

A statement, issued by Wittingtons on 7 October 2026, said that once the sale goes through in early 2027, Galen Weston, chairman of Wittington, will become chairman of Boots.

In the statement, Weston said: “We have great respect for Boots’ legacy and leading market position. We see a meaningful opportunity to make a great business even better through stable long-term ownership, further capital investment, and the renewed operating focus required to serve customers with excellence for generations to come.”

High-street pharmacy multiple Boots has closed hundreds of stores in recent years, bringing its current total to about 1,800 stores in the UK.

Commenting on the proposed sale, Paul Day, chief executive of the Pharmacists’ Defence Association (PDA) Union, which represents Boots pharmacists, told The Pharmaceutical Journal: “Ownership may change, but our role doesn’t change. We’ll continue to represent Boots pharmacists collectively and individually, we’ll protect their interests at work and continue to engage constructively with their employer.

“It’s early days, but the new owners have talked about investment… we welcome investment in the business and anything that enables our members to do more, to deliver good care to patients.

“Boots pharmacists could do more, but they need sufficient staffing and good working environments to be able to utilise the full contribution to healthcare that pharmacists can give.”

Also on 7 October, the PDA announced a 3.4% pay award for all bargaining unit members at Boots, as well as payments for store managers, designated prescribing practitioners, trainee supervisors, and prescribers.