January 17th 2007

Entertainment UK (EUK), the Woolworths Group-owned wholesale distributor of home entertainment and books, today announced that it has entered into a process to purchase books wholesaler Bertram Group.

The acquisition will significantly enhance EUK’s book wholesale capabilities and will enable the company to further develop its retail and online customer base.

Founded almost 40 years ago, Bertram Books is one of the UK’s leading books wholesalers, servicing independent and major bookseller chains such as Waterstones as well as clients in the US and Western Europe. In addition, Bertram Publisher Services provides distribution services to specialist and independent publishers, and Bertram Library Services is the UK’s leading supplier to public, school and university libraries.

Lloyd Wigglesworth, managing director of EUK commented, “Our acquisition of Total Home Entertainment (THE) last year was the first step towards becoming a credible broad-based player in the books wholesale market and the addition of the Bertram Group will further strengthen this position.  With a range of more than 200,000 books available and a reputation for excellence in customer service, Bertram will be an excellent addition to EUK and the Woolworths Group.”

Terry Reilly, CEO of Bertram Group commented, “Bertram is delighted by the prospect of working with EUK and THE, and becoming part of a much larger group backed by a major UK plc. We look forward to leveraging our combined skills for the benefit of our trade and library customers and to offer the most comprehensive service in the industry across all sales channels.”