Boots sold in £7bn deal to Canadian billionaire family

Boots, the High Street pharmacy and retail chain, has been sold in an $8.9bn (£6.7bn) deal to Canada's billionaire Weston family.

Wittington Investments, the holding company, confirmed it had agreed to buy 177-year-old company on Wednesday from US private equity firm Sycamore Partners and the Pessina family.

Boots started as a simple apothecary in Nottingham but has evolved to become a stalwart of the High Street, expanding its business to sell a vast range of health and beauty products, meal…