The troubled upmarket supermarket chain Nosh has been sold for a reported $4 million.
Stuff reported this month the stores were bought by a consortium of Kiwi investors who did not wish to be named.
NZX-listed Veritas Investments which owns Nosh told Stuff it was selling the chain to a company called Gosh Holding and would use the proceeds to settle debt with ANZ.
Nosh – which has a store in Pakuranga – had been given a little leeway by its bank involving the sale of the business or winding the business down.
NZX-listed Veritas Investments, which owns Nosh Group, last month announced ANZ had agreed to extend delivery of a proposal until January 31 (Times, January 19).
Over the Christmas/New Year period, Veritas received a number of approaches from potential purchasers for the group.
The company announced in September that it had entered into an arrangement with ANZ in relation to the group’s banking facility. The revised facility agreement contains a number of undertakings and milestones for Veritas.
“As previously disclosed, Veritas has been undertaking a number of initiatives to improve Nosh’s sales and profitability and embarked upon a strategy to franchise the six stores that are currently under company ownership,” Veritas chairman Tim Cook said in a statement to the NZX in December.
“This was one of a number of options that the board has investigated in connection with the future of Nosh and one that attracted a strong level of response and interest from potential franchisees.”
Veritas, which also owns the Mad Butcher franchisor business, was initially required under the revised facility to deliver by January 15 either an unconditional contract for the sale of Nosh or a proposal to close and wind down Nosh.
The group was also required to close and wind down Nosh by March 31 if it wasn’t sold by that date.
Stuff reported Nosh made a loss of $1.9 million last year.
It also quotes the new chairman Sydney-based Andrew Phillips as saying there would be an internal restructure with no change for customers and all stores open for business.
The new owners believed Nosh to be a “great brand” presenting opportunities to open more stores.
