A successful bid by Wyevale for Dobbies could put hundreds of jobs at risk

A successful bid by Wyevale Garden Centres to buy rival Dobbies would put hundreds of jobs at risk, sources have told The Mail on Sunday.

Wyevale is trying to buy Dobbies from Tesco, which is selling non-essential assets to allow it to focus on its core supermarket business.

The bid by Wyevale owner Terra Firma, the private equity firm run by financier Guy Hands, would threaten Dobbies’ Edinburgh head office, which employs about 180 staff.

It could also lead to the closure of stores in areas where the two firms had competing garden centres, taking job losses to as many as 400.

Wyevale is understood to have no firm plans in place over Dobbies’ head office if it is successful in its £175million approach.

The combined group could have as many as 175 sites and would be about six times the size of its nearest rival.

Wall Street bank Goldman Sachs is advising Wyevale.

Source : Neil Craven – Mail On Sunday
www.dailymail.co.uk/money/markets/article-3555365/Bid-Wyevale-Garden-Centres-buy-rival-Dobbies-risk-jobs.html