By McColl’s to stay open as Morrisons wins bid to save 16,000 jobs
Morrisons has gained control of McColl’s Retail Group, one of Britain’s biggest convenience store chains, after an offer to buy out its syndicate of bank lenders.
Sky News first reported that the supermarket giant beat competition from EG Group, the petrol station operator, with an offer that will see McColl’s stores and workforce preserved.
The deal will be structured as a pre-pack administration, meaning Morrisons will buy McColl’s immediately after it enters insolvency proceedings overseen by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).
On Friday, Morrisons said it believed there was no reason for the corner shop empire to be declared insolvent.
Morrisons plans to retain all 1,100 stores and 16,000 workers, as well as honouring all of its outstanding pension obligations, according to an insider source.
An improved offer to McColl’s lenders that would see them repaid immediately in full, satisfying their principal demand, was also among the decisive factors.
PwC are expected to make an annoncement later on today.
McColl’s is an important partner of Morrisons, operating hundreds of smaller shops under the Morrisons Daily brand.
Key to securing the winning bid has been a willingness to repay McColl’s banks around £170m, as well as taking on responsibility for the company’s pension scheme which has 2,000 members.
