Sainsbury's sold Argos to three retail veterans for 120 million pounds, a decade after buying it in a 1.3 billion pound deal

The supermarket chain Sainsbury's announced on Friday, 31 July 2026, that it has agreed to sell the Argos retail chain for £120 million so that it can concentrate on its core food business. The buyer is Swift Partners, a newly established company set up for the deal by three retail veterans: Richard Pennycook, who previously ran the Co-operative Group and turned around the Morrisons chain, Trevor Strain, another former Morrisons executive, and Matt Truman.

Simon Roberts, Sainsbury's chief executive, said it would be "business as usual" for staff, customers and suppliers, adding that the agreement is a further step in the company's strategy: "Having rebuilt the core strengths of our food business, this agreement allows us to focus all our resources and investment on the significant opportunities ahead." Pennycook said he believes strongly in Argos's future, and that the company's combination of a strong digital business with standalone stores, stores inside Sainsbury's and local fulfilment centres gives it a distinctive position and an excellent platform for growth.

Sainsbury's had bought Argos in early 2016 as part of its acquisition of Home Retail Group, along with brands including Habitat, in a £1.3 billion deal aimed at creating a combined food and non-food retailer to take on companies such as Amazon and John Lewis. Britain's second largest supermarket never lived up to that ambition, given the tight margins of the business and consumers watching their spending closely through the cost of living squeeze. Roberts had announced a "food first" strategy on becoming chief executive in 2020.