Sainsbury’s announced the sale of Argos to Swift Partners, a newly formed company led by former Co-operative Group chief Richard Pennycook, for £120m. The transaction represents the supermarket chain’s latest step in divesting the retail brand after multiple previous attempts to offload the business.
Argos operates 667 stores across the UK, comprising 201 standalone locations and 466 shops within Sainsbury’s premises, alongside more than 450 collection points. Nearly 14,000 employees are expected to transfer to Swift Partners under the agreement. Sainsbury’s stated that customer operations would remain unchanged, with Argos continuing to function within its supermarket locations, Nectar loyalty points remaining available across both brands, and Habitat products continuing to be sold by Sainsbury’s.
Sainsbury’s originally acquired Argos through its 2016 purchase of Home Retail Group for £1.4bn and subsequently sold Argos financial services for approximately £720m in 2024. The company had previously pursued a sale to Chinese online retailer JD.com, which fell through in September of the prior year. Retail analysts noted that Argos had underperformed financially and represented a distraction from Sainsbury’s primary grocery operations, with the brand experiencing a 0.5% sales dip in the first three months of the year despite group-wide sales growth of 3.1%.
Pennycook expressed confidence in Argos’s prospects under new ownership, indicating potential for new standalone store openings and not ruling out the possibility of reviving a printed catalogue. Industry observers highlighted that dedicated ownership could enable Argos to operate as a digitally-focused business, leveraging its click-and-collect service and mobile app as competitive advantages against major online retailers. The transaction is scheduled to complete in February next year.
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