THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, March 15, 1996 TAG: 9603150580
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: D1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: LANDMARK NEWS SERVICE
LENGTH: Short : 40 lines
Leggett Stores Inc., a family-owned chain of department stores based in South Boston, is considering a buyout offer.
President Robert Leggett said last week that the company's board of directors is studying an acquisition proposal from a ``major retailer.''
Leggett declined to name the potential buyer. He also would not say whether the proposal involved the entire 37-store chain or just selected stores.
Leggett, a Southern chain, operates four traditional department stores in South Hampton Roads, as well as two Leggett Outlet Centers.
Industry observers have speculated that Proffitt's Inc., a department store chain based in Alcoa, Tenn., might be interested in expanding its toehold into Virginia. Another company mentioned as a prospective buyer is Dillard Department Stores, based in Little Rock, Ark.
Dillard plans to open a department store in MacArthur Center, an upscale mall in downtown Norfolk that's scheduled to open in the spring of 1998. Several years ago, the chain tried unsuccessfully to break into the Hampton Roads market.
``There's no question that Proffitt's is looking for acquisitions,'' said Kenneth M. Gassman Jr., a retail analyst with Davenport & Co. of Virginia, a Richmond-based brokerage.
But Proffitt's has grown rapidly over the past few years, mostly through acquisitions, and may not be ready to swallow another company, Gassman said. Last year, Proffitt's nearly doubled its size by purchasing Younkers Inc., a 53-store chain based in Iowa.
A Proffitt's spokeswoman said the company would not comment. A spokesman for Dillard Department Stores did not return telephone calls. by CNB