Richard Baker, the former Boots chief, is adding one of the UK’s fastest-growing online sports and outdoor goods retailers to his embryonic private equity portfolio.

Sky News has learnt that bd-capital, which was established in 2019 by Mr Baker and Andy Dawson, his business partner, will announce on Thursday that it has acquired a stake in SportPursuit.

The deal will be the third investment made by bd-capital since its inception, and will underline the firm’s strategy of backing businesses whose founders have identified changing patterns of consumer behaviour and technology disruption.

SportPursuit, which launched in 2011, is a private sales club which partners with major outdoor goods brands such as Berghaus, Canterbury and Garmin to offer products at deeply discounted prices.

The company, which is run by chief executive Adam Pikett, describes itself as the leading one of its type in the UK and Germany.

SportPursuit’s founders and management team, including Mr Pikett, will remain as investors in the business.

Following the investment from bd-capital, Graham Elton, one of its operating partners, will become SportPursuit’s chairman.

The deal will result in SportPursuit shareholders including Draper Esprit, the listed technology company investor, and Scottish Equity Partners selling their stakes.

Terms of the transaction were unclear on Wednesday.

It follows bd-capital’s acquisition of interests in Ascenti, one of Britain’s biggest private providers of physiotherapy services, and Symprove, a manufacturer of probiotic health products.

Mr Baker ranks among Britain’s leading businessmen, having chaired Whitbread, the then owner of Costa Coffee, after stepping down as Boots’ chief executive.

After stepping back from his boardroom roles in 2018 to take a year off, he has become a director of the All England Lawn Tennis Club, which is preparing to stage the Wimbledon tennis tournament following its cancellation last year.

Prior to running Boots, which he helped to sell to the buyout giant KKR in 2006, he was an executive at companies including Asda and Mars.

Bd-capital declined to comment.

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