Selfridges reportedly agrees sale to Thailand’s Central Group
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The soon-to-be new owner of British department store chain Selfridges has reportedly been revealed.
The current owner of the iconic retailer, the billionaire Weston family, has agreed to sell the business to Thailand’s Central Group, according to The Times. The family hopes the deal will go through before the end of the year.
Selfridges hasn’t commented on the report.
It is unclear how much Selfridges will be sold for, though The Times said the deal would include the company’s property assets, which are valued at 2 billion pounds.
Earlier reports indicated the Weston family was eyeing a price tag of 4 billion pounds.
Selfridges to swap hands
Selfridges' owners kicked off a formal auction for the company in the summer, calling in advisers from investment bank Credit Suisse to “imminently” send out information memoranda to prospective buyers.
Selfridges was founded in 1908 by Harry Gordon Selfridge and was purchased in 2003 by the Weston family in a 598 million pound deal.
The reins of the Selfridges group were handed over from the late WG Galen Weston to his daughter Alannah two years ago.
Today, the company has 25 stores worldwide, including its Oxford Street store in London, Brown Thomas and Arnotts in Ireland, Holt Renfrew in Canada, and de Bijenkorf in the Netherlands.