Beleaguered department store chain Beales is in talks to surrender one of its department stores to supermarket giant Sainsbury’s.
The group said it had signed a conditional agreement with Sainsbury’s that may allow the “possible future surrender” of its lease on its Tonbridge store.
Beales has collected £1m on signing the deal.
The group said that the transaction was conditional on certain pre-conditions being satisfied within a six-year period, but that if the surrender went ahead it would receive a premium of as much as £3m.
The chain has around 1m sq ft of space across the UK.
Its latest set of annual results, for the 12 months ended November 2012, revealed a £5.8m loss.
The chain has also suffered a host of resignations, including its chief executive Tony Brown.
It said it was focused on securing the business, however, and recently secured a new three-year banking deal.
samantha.mcclary@estatesgazette.com
