Somerfield Supermarkets to float next month

Somerfield, the supermarkets group owned by the heavily indebted Isosceles, will float next month with a value of around pounds 500m. One in five of the shares will be marketed to private investors via share shops nationwide.

David Simmons, the chief executive, is widely credited with hauling the group back from the brink since 1993, and he says a float is essential to provide Somerfield with sufficient capital for its store-opening programme.