Alldays jobs under threat in takeover

Alldays marketing director Sally Nichols’ position is under review, after the convenience chain was acquired from the receivers by the Co-operative Group, in a £131m deal.

It is likely that many of the 600 Alldays shops will be rebranded under the Co-op Welcome convenience store brand.

A spokeswoman for the Co-op Group says: “At the moment, staff are transferring to us and we are evaluating the situation. The stores are carrying on as Alldays for now, but we will be rebranding them at some stage.”

It is not clear what will happen to the 30 Alldays stores run by independent franchisees. The Co-op Group did not, prior to the acquisition of Alldays, have stores run by franchisees.

The deal makes the Co-op Group, which already has more than 1,000 outlets, the market leader in the £20bn UK convenience sector. Leading supermarket retailers such as Tesco and Sainsbury have recognised the importance of the convenience market, launching their sub-brands such as Tesco Metro, Tesco Express and Sainsbury’s Local.

Alldays was was put into receivership immediately prior to the sale on Monday, as it laboured under £200m of debt. Its shares ceased trading at 5p, valuing the company at £2.2m. Alldays’ bankers have written off around £60m of debt, while the Co-op Group has assumed responsibility for creditors and employees and will pay shareholders the suspension price of 5p.