Stockmann Dismisses Rumour of British Takeover
Stockmann's flagship store in Helsinki.
Image: Touko Yrttimaa / YLE
The British newspaper the Independent claims in its Sunday edition that market-watchers in London are speculating whether British department store Debenhams is planning to try to acquire iconic Finnish department store chain Stockmann. Stockmann says the rumours are completely fictional.
Money market centre City is quoted as the source of the "growing speculation", but Stockmann management broke silence policy to swiftly dismiss the rumours as completely baseless.
"Normally we do not comment on market rumours, but this is such a strange market rumour that we have to comment. We have absolutely no knowledge of this. Most likely someone -- I don't know who -- plucked this idea out of thin air," says Stockmann VP Pekka Vähähyyppä.
The Independent quotes James Monro of Standard & Poors Equity Research as saying that the Finnish department store was "a good acquisition target" and that Debenhams would be wise to make a move "before their stock price shoots up."
After posting good first-quarter results, Debenhams would theoretically be in a good position to try to buy Stockmann, which would give it a foothold not only into Finland, but more importantly into the Baltic states and Russia.
YLE, the Independent