Boots owners eye stock market listing in London

Boots’ private equity owners are plotting a potential stock market listing in London next year, in a major boost for the City.

Sycamore Partners and the British chemist are working with consultants on a revamp of its strategy to ready it for a flotation.

Talks with advisers have also included how to focus the business and its growth plans on beauty and wellness, Reuters reported.

This would be a shot in the arm for the London market, which is hoping to see a flurry of well-known companies list this year.

But London’s flotations have languished in recent years as firms have instead looked to rival bourses in New York or Amsterdam.

City boost: London has seen a dearth of listings in recent years as firms have opted for New York and Amsterdam

The report came as news of a corporate break-up of Associated British Foods has also raised the prospect of fashion chain Primark joining the FTSE 100.

And there is also hope that bookshop Waterstones could be listed in Britain too.

Pressure will now be on ministers and City executives to persuade Sycamore to list Boots in London – after missing out on Unilever’s ice cream spin off and fashion chain Shein last year.

The return of Boots, which started out as a family herbal medicine shop in Nottingham in 1849, would be a much-needed vote of confidence.

Reuters said its sources said that discussions are in early stages and no final decision has been taken on whether to list Boots.

It is thought that Sycamore might instead sell the company, as is typical after private equity buy outs.

Sycamore bought Walgreens Boots Alliance, which owned Boots, last year for more than £7billion. It then spun off Boots into a standalone entity, with Italian billionaire Stefano Pessina and his family retaining a stake.

An earlier attempt to sell Boots was abandoned in 2022 due to suitors reportedly being unwilling to pay a £5.5billion price tag.

But analysts believe Boots – which has around 1,800 shops – is more attractive now after enjoying bumper beauty and fragrance sales in recent years. 

Jonathan De Mello, the founder of JDM Retail, said that by focusing on ‘beauty and wellness’, Boots is also ‘effectively future-proofing its physical footprint, transforming traditional pharmacies into higher margin destinations.’ 

Experts had been optimistic that 2026 would be a renaissance year for London listings following blockbuster flotations from Princes Food and Shawbrook at the end of last year. 

But now the war in the Middle East has likely put a dampener on flotation activity in the short term.

Just two firms listed in the first three months of the year, including currency trading platform iFOREX Financial Trading Holdings, which listed on the main market, and mining group Halo Minerals, which listed on the junior AIM market.

Danni Hewson, head of financial analysis at AJ Bell, said: ‘After years of neglect Boots has regained its mojo, and as a highly recognisable British brand it would immediately resonate with investors if it does list.’