Tesco sells Dobbies Garden Centres

After offloading supermarket chain Kipa and Giraffe restaurant chain British retailer Tesco has now confirmed the sale of its Dobbies Garden Centres – a UK-based specialist garden centre retailer – business to an investor group led by Midlothian Capital Partners and Hattington Capital.

The sale includes the entire share capital of Dobbies Garden Centres Ltd against which Tesco will receive £217 million in cash.

Commenting on the sale, Tesco chief executive Dave Lewis says, “Through their hard work and dedication to customer service, Dobbies colleagues have built a great business, and I would like to thank them for everything they have done. It was a difficult decision to sell the business, but we believe this agreement will give Dobbies a bright future, while allowing our UK retail business to focus on its core strengths.”

“We are delighted to have been chosen by Tesco to take ownership of the Dobbies Garden Centres business. It is a great business with fantastic colleagues. We’re very optimistic about the potential of the business, and we look forward to growing the business across the UK from its base in Scotland,” add Andrew Bracey of Midlothian Capital Partners and Barney Burgess from Hattington Capital.

Tesco had bought Dobbies Garden Centres in 2007, which currently operates 35 garden centres across Scotland, England and Northern Ireland. After the sale, Tesco will continue to offer customers a wide home and garden products through its own stores and online.