Burges Salmon has acted for the European retail group, Louis Delhaize, on the sale of The Garden & Leisure Group to The Garden Centre Group.
Garden & Leisure, which is headquartered at Cadbury near Bristol, comprises seven major UK garden centres. Burges Salmon has acted for the group since its inception in 1997 and recently advised on the major redevelopment of its Percy Thrower's store in Shrewsbury.
This transaction represents the latest in a string of deals for Burges Salmon’s Retail and Leisure sector group, including the sale by Country Homes and Gardens plc of its garden centre businesses, also to The Garden Centre Group, in 2011.
The Burges Salmon team drew on a wide range of disciplines and included partners Rupert Weston (Corporate) and Richard Read (Real Estate), senior associates Jonathan Eves (Corporate), Paul Doherty (Real Estate), associates John Manis (Corporate Tax) and Joanne Attwood (Environment), and solicitors Lizzie King (Corporate), Will Hall (Real Estate), Natalie Jeffries (Employment), and Alex Minhinick (Planning).
Rupert Weston commented: “We are delighted to have been asked to advise Louis Delhaize in relation to this strategic disposal, particularly as it involves a business we know very well and have seen grow from a single site to a chain of seven nationally renowned centres.”
McQueen Corporate Finance Limited also advised Garden & Leisure.