The retailer, which drafted in adviser Deloitte to steer the sale, is thought to have received little interest in the businesses, which include the beleaguered UniEuro chain in Italy and PC City in Spain.
Since trade interest has failed to materialise, it is likely that the main focus in the search for potential buyers will now fall on the private equity and hedge fund arena.
A source close to the situation said that although a potential buyer would gain immediate scale and is likely to be offered a dowry to take the businesses off DSGi’s hands, “the appetite is low because of the cash involved in sorting out restructuring afterwards”.
Shore Capital analyst John Stevenson said that a more focused international portfolio centred on the more profitable divisions “is to be applauded”. However, he added: “We do not see scope for a significant cash inflow from disposals – quite the opposite.”
The retailer is expected to reveal a low single-digit like-for-like slump in the first 16 weeks of the year at its AGM trading update on Wednesday.
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