Roger Gillespie, the founder of bakery chain Bakers Delight, has emerged as a white knight for collapsed Victorian grocery chain NQR, which was placed in administration in late May.
Gillespie has teamed up with a former owner of NQR, Ken Nienaber, to buy the chain from administrators Ferrier Hodgson.
A price has not been disclosed and the administrators declined to comment on the deal.
NQR, formerly known as Not Quite Right, is a discount grocery chain that specialises in selling discontinued products and stock close to its use-by-date.
The chain was established 22 years ago in West Melbourne as a single discount variety store. It was put up for sale in 2005 and was sold in May 2006 to a private equity consortium led by Hastings Funds Management and specialist retail investment house, Step Capital. The deal was rumoured to be worth $13 million.
In recent years, the chain has been expanded to 26 stores and around 400 staff.
Gillespie founded Bakers Delight in 1980 and remains the executive chairman of that company. He was unavailable for comment before publication.
James was the editor and publisher of SmartCompany and LeadingCompany for five years. He is now the Australian Financial Review‘s companies & markets editor, and a former BRW editor.
