Property company Minerva may finally secure a sale of its entire portfolio, following its decision to offload the troubled Allders department store chain.
Minerva has been up for sale since July and has seen its takeover price drop from £650m to £400m, apparently because of the unattractiveness of Allders.
Seymour Pierce analyst Richard Ratner said the stores, which are mostly leasehold, were likely to be sold in chunks to retailers such as John Lewis, House of Fraser, Debenhams, Next and Gap.
“That must be beneficial for the sale of Minerva’s other assets,” said Ratner.
Allders chief executive Terry Green and commercial director Phil Cox, backed by Barclays, have made an offer for Allders.
Minerva denied it was selling the chain to aid a sale and said it was still in discussions for the whole of the business.
References: EGi News 10/12/04
