“The Secret Millionaire” Mike Greene behind Morrisons stores takeover

The £25m takeover of Morrisons M Local shops is headed by Mike Greene, who previously starred in Channel 4’s The Secret Millionaire.

Best-known for investing in the Comet chain and now backed by Greybull Capital, Greene is leading the buyout of 140 of the convenience stores from the struggling supermarket retailer.

Greene and Greybull

Greene founded the Association of Retail Newsagents and has also been on the board of the Association of Convenience Stores for 20 years.

Backers Greybull Capital are a private investment group who garnered headlines for their takeover of the Comet electrical retailer chain.

This latest deal comes with promises to safeguard 2,300 existing store staff and provide up to 200 new jobs, as ten stores already closed by Morrisons will reopen under a 'My Local' rebranding.

Change of supply

The former Secret Millionaire star Greene has refused to comment on the size of his own fortune, and the consortium stated that management will have a “significant holding alongside majority shareholder Greybull Capital LLP.”

As to the changes in operations for the rebranded stores, Greene said: “Supermarket distribution depots are not usually experienced or expert in small-drop frequent deliveries ...so there’s a cost challenge there.

“We will work with one of the UK’s leading wholesalers that on a daily basis deliver to thousands of small stores and have been doing so for decades, efficiently and profitably in very small drops,” he added.

Responding to questions about the quality of the sites previously owned by Morrisons, he said: “They have the good, the bad and the ugly but no worse or better than Sainsbury’s, Tesco and the like.”

Picture: Janusz Lukasiak