Petco Animal Supplies Inc. (San Diego) has begun talking about a merger with top competitor, PetSmart Inc., a private subsidiary of BC Partners (London), reports Reuters.
PetSmart previously decided not to enter a deal with Petco last year when the company was bough out by BC Partners for $8.7 billion, which includes debt. A previous deal between the two companies was not successful, allegedly because Petco was not comfortable disclosing its confidential information to its biggest competitor, PetSmart, states Reuters.
Petco is also exploring additional options for buyouts from private equity firms including an outright sale of the company, but leadership has entered into informal talks with PetSmart in hopes of a better deal.