The retail division of troubled drinks group Conviviality Retail has been rescued by leading food wholesaler Bestway Wholesale, the wholesale arm of Bestway Group in a £7.5m deal. The takeover means Conviviality's retail chains Wine Rack and Bargain Booze will avoid losing over 2000 jobs. Included in the deal are other Conviviality businesses Select Convenience and WS Retail. Conviviality Retail has 769 stores in the UK, mainly operating through franchise models. The pre-pack administration process, which was completed by Bestway on Friday last week allows the buyer to pick and choose a falling company’s best assets at a bargain price.
In March this year Conviviality dramatically collapsed after failing to secure funding from shareholders. It's chief executive Diana Hunter stepped down from the board last month.
Commenting on the deal, Zameer Choudrey CBE, Chief Executive Officer of Bestway Group, said “We feel this acquisition represents a great fit for both Bestway Wholesale and Conviviality’s retail base. This deal provides much needed certainty to these stores and our priority will be to stabilise the supply of stock into these businesses. These retailers can get back to ‘business as usual’ with the confidence of having the support of the UK’s largest independent wholesaler”.
“We are also pleased that as a result of the deal we have been able to provide job security to over 2,300 colleagues, who have incredible expertise and experience that will truly be a great asset to our combined business. By stepping in we have also ensured the franchisee stores get the support they need and deserve to grow their businesses, as well as continuing to provide choice for shoppers on the high street.”
Dawood Pervez, Trading Director of Bestway Wholesale commented, “The purchase of these four businesses will further strengthen our position within the convenience retail sector. We provide our suppliers with a safe and credible trading partner that will provide access to a vastly increased, and the most disciplined, route to market in the independent convenience sector.”
Bestway Group
Founded and chaired by the billionaire Sir Anwar Pervez, Bestway Group is one of Britain’s biggest food wholesaler serving thousands of retailers. It also owns the Well Pharmacy chain, which it purchased from Co-operative Pharmacy four years ago. Bestway Cement has grown from a start-up to Pakistan’s second largest cement producer with an annual capacity of 6 million tonnes while providing employment to over 3,000 people.
The group's Chief Executive Zameer Choudrey was awarded the Sitara-e-Imtiaz (Star of Excellence), by the President of Pakistan on 23rd March 2018, in recognition of his contributions to Pakistan through his services and the wide array of philanthropic work. Sitara-e-Imtiaz is one of Pakistan’s highest civilian honours for public service.
Retail woes continue
Britains high street retailers have been witnessing a string of closures and restructuring. Both Debenhams and House of Fraser reported disappointing Christmas sales last year. TK Max, Pandora and New Look have all seen a fall in hight street sales. On the contrary online sales of Next and Debenhams have seen improvement. Industry sources say that this is mostly due to the fall in disposable incomes. Households have seen a rise in income averaging 2.2% while inflation has risen 3%. Due to a post-EU referendum economy, with uncertainty forcing companies to delay investment, the gloom over average wages doesn’t look like rising strongly any time soon meaning uncertain times for high street. Retailers.
Several well-known restaurants have sought a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) in a bid to cut costs, as tough trading conditions on the UK high street continue.
