Tony Leon the former boss of Coles’ Liquor division and the mastermind behind Woolworths’ Dan Murphy’s superstores, has aggressive expansion plans after buying a 50 per cent stake in retail chain Steve’s Liquor.
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Steve’s Liquor runs five stores in Victoria and Tasmania and a liquor wholesaling business and is planning to use that as a springboard to triple in size within three to five years.
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Mr Leon said on Thursday there were plans in place for strong organic growth, but also the potential for further acquisitions.
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“I’d like to double or triple the business in the next three to five years, and that’s without acquisitions,’’ he said.
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But there were numerous acquisition opportunities also on the cards as smaller players looked to exit the industry.
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He wouldn’t comment on the persistent speculation that he may have been part of a consortium that made an offer a couple of months ago to buy the 77-store Vintage Cellars chain from the Wesfarmers-owned Coles liquor business.
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The other half of Steve’s Liquor is owned by Steve and Glen Skelton, with Shane Vella a minority partner.
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Steve Skelton said the business was established 10 years ago, and had brought in Mr Leon to help it expand to the next phase. Sydney Morning Herald – Read more…
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