DIY chain Focus sold

Cerberus, the private equity firm, has drafted in the retail veterans Bill Grimsey and Bill Hoskins to oversee a turnaround of Focus, the heavily indebted DIY group which it has bought for £1.
The private equity firm said it will pay off the company’s £174 million of debts and pay £40 million - 40p in the £1 - to bondholders of the Crewe-based company, which is the UK’s third-largest DIY business.
It has also named Mr Grimsey and Mr Hoskins, who in the Nineties led a turnaround of Wickes, the DIY chain and builders’ merchant, as chief executive and finance director to help revive the business.
The DIY retailer was put up for sale by the private equity firms Duke Street Capital and Apax Partners in January after it became clear that its sales were not improving fast enough to service its huge £280 million debt burden. Its banks set a June deadline for a deal.
The 250-store chain had struggled to compete and had accumulated debt in a difficult market. The deal is expected to complete in July. Last year underlying profits at the group were £42.7 million on sales of £701.9 million.
from the times online