Wyevale loses out to Tesco

Tesco has acquired the majority shareholding in the UK garden centre chain Dobbies, it is reported by the UK online service Gardenforum. The UK supermarket giant’s holding of 53 per cent gives it control of the business. Dobbies also attracted interest from Tom Hunter, owner of Wyevale, the biggest garden centre chain in the UK, but Hunter lost out in the bidding war. The Dobbies brand is now expected to be developed further under the Tesco umbrella. How it will look in future, however, will depend in part on Hunter, whose West Coast Capital operation holds 29 per cent of Dobbies’ shares.