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THe U.K. catalog group GUS plc surprised investors Thursday, Nov. 21, by announcing the pounds 900 million ($1.4 billion) purchase of the home improvement chain Homebase from Permira.
The private equity sellers agreed to the deal after scrapping plans for an IPO. Permira, then known as Schroder Ventures Europe, bought 71.2% of Homebase in March 2001 from the food retailer J Sainsbury plc. The PE firm paid pounds 491 million for the business in a complex transaction worth pounds 1 billion in total.
GUS strategy appears to run counter to that of other large U.K. retailers, which are trying to hone their focus.The home improvement retailer Kingfisher plc, for example, is...