Shareholders back takeover
Homestyle shares are to be delisted from the London Stock Exchange from 8am tomorrow.

Further to the furniture retailer's announcement earlier this month, shareholders voted unanimously for the main shareholder Steinhoff to takeover.

The South African manufacturing company is taking the company private, valuing the business at£52.4 million.

Homestyle, which owns Harveys and Bensons Beds chains, has more than 570 stores in the UK, selling beds and other household furniture.

Refinancing last year led to a large consolidation of share ownership, with the top three shareholders controlling more than 75 per cent of the shares.

The company said the stock exchange might suspend Homestyle if its free float was not raised to comply with the UK's mandatory 25 per cent threshold. Steinhoff previously had a 61 per cent holding with Formal Property Management Services (8.65 per cent) and RMB Asset Management (5.12 per cent) holding the rest.

This final offer was agreed from Steinhoff Europe for the 39 per cent of Homestyle it did not already hold.

Homestyle chairman Donald MacPherson said at the time: 'We believe profitability will be restored more rapidly under the ownership structure proposed by Steinhoff.'

It intends to increase Homestyle's 'footprint, retail base and trading densities' after the acquisition.