Sainsbury buys another chain

ANOTHER family-run grocery chain has succumbed to a takeover by a supermarket giant as cut-throat competition takes its toll.

Sainsbury is buying JB Beaumont which owns six stores in the Nottingham area and is part of the Costcutter buying group.

The firm, which had sales of £13m last year, is the latest convenience store deal for Sainsbury which bought Bells and Jacksons this year.

Independent shops are finding it harder to compete with Tesco and Sainsbury which have opened hundreds of small stores. Beaumont boss Louise Beaumont, 40, says: 'Projecting into the future, we felt things were going to get more difficult... We felt the offer from Sainsbury was a good one.'

The deal will lead to an estimated windfall of up to £5m for the Beaumont clan, which created its mini-empire from a butcher's shop opened by Louise's grandfather in 1887. Brothers Richard and Paul work as retail director and fresh food director respectively. Sister Alison Dove is human resources director.

Their 67-year-old father still works on the butcher's counter. Along with 190 employees, the family will keep their jobs.

Louise Beaumont's sentiments are echoed by Christopher Oughtred, the managing director of William Jackson, whose great-great grandfather founded the Jacksons grocery chain.

He says: 'We were fine until about three years ago, when Tesco and Sainsbury began to enter the convenience market. Then we found we were beginning to come up against the big multiples more and more and it is quite difficult to win.'

Many small retailers have decided to sell out in recent years. Tesco bought T&S Stores in 2002 and snapped up the Cullens and Europa brands.

Ireland's Musgrave has bought Budgens and Londis, while the Co-op has bought Alldays, Balfour and Conveco.