North-west department store group to snap up East of England Co-op furniture stores

25th June 2009 | acquisition | The East of England Co-op is to sell its furniture retail business to north-west department store group Vergo Retail.

The deal is expected to include six dedicated furniture and home shops and five department stores. Vergo Retail already owns Lewis’ of Liverpool, Robbs of Hexham, Joplings of Sunderland and Derrys of Plymouth.

It also owns four Homemaker branded stores in the south west of England. Vergo’s latest reported turnover, for the nine months to 26th January last year, was £15.8m, but this figure precedes a number of the group’s subsequent acquisitions.

The Co-op stores to be bought include furniture and home stores in Felixstowe, Stowmarket, Clacton, Stanway, Witham and Dovercourt, and department stores in Colchester, Clacton-on-Sea, Ipswich, Norwich and Great Yarmouth.