31 July 2006
The London Stock Exchange is delighted to welcome Alliance Boots to the Main Market.
Alliance Boots plc opened the London markets on the day the company confirmed the successful completion of the merger between Boots Group PLC and Alliance UniChem Plc to form a new international pharmacy-led health and beauty group.
Alliance Boots is an international pharmacy-led health and beauty group operating in several countries across the world. The company operates pharmaceutical wholesaling businesses in eight countries (the UK, The Netherlands, Czech Republic, Norway, France, Italy, Spain and Russia) with associate wholesaling interests in a further six countries (Portugal, Turkey, Germany, Switzerland, Egypt and Romania). It also operates retail stores, pharmacies and implants in a further 16 countries (Canada, Dubai, Finland, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Kuwait, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Romania, Russia, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, the UK and USA) and distributes a selection of brands in Iceland, The Netherlands, the Republic of Ireland and Switzerland.
Richard Baker, Chief Executive of Alliance Boots, commented:
“I am delighted that we are able to announce the completion of the merger between Alliance UniChem and Boots to create Europe’s foremost international pharmacy-led health and beauty group. The union of these two great businesses also establishes a new market leader in UK pharmacy and provides exciting opportunities for international growth."
“The merger will enable us to improve the offering for both our wholesale and retail customers. While there is a lot of hard work ahead and it will take time to deliver the full benefits of this merger, we are already making changes for our customers in the UK with a range of popular Boots products available in 500 Alliance Pharmacies from today."
“We have a firm foundation for our future success and we are determined to deliver the benefits of this to our enlarged group of shareholders in the years to come.”
