Sainsbury's has completed the sale of its catalogue retailer Argos to private equity firm Swift for £120m. This deal represents the latest move in the supermarket giant's strategy to return to its core food business, following years of divesting from its broader high street interests.
The grocer, which holds a 15 per cent market share of grocery stores, second only to Tesco, had previously owned a diverse business empire. This included furniture stores, DIY outlets, banking services, and homeware.
Sainsbury's acquired Home Retail Group, which encompassed Argos and Habitat, for £1.4bn a decade ago. At the time of the sale to Swift, only 201 standalone Argos stores were left, with an additional 466 operating within larger Sainsbury's stores. All 34 Argos stores in the Republic of Ireland were closed in 2023.
The company has also systematically dismantled its financial arm. NatWest purchased Sainsbury's Bank's personal loan, credit card, and retail deposit business for £125m in 2024. Subsequently, its ATMs were sold to NoteMachine, travel money to Fexco, and existing car and home insurance policies to Allianz UK.
Habitat, which focuses on furniture and home accessories and was part of the 2016 Argos deal, has followed a similar path. By 2023, all standalone Habitat stores were closed, with only small in-store branches and online sales remaining.