The man who made Kingfisher a global DIY force is the latest name to be linked with a bid for Woolworths.

Sir Geoff Mulcahy who, as part of a consortium, bought Woolworths in the 1980s wants to take on 500 of the firm's ailing stores and keep the name alive, according to The Sun newspaper.

The current chairman of the British Retail Consortium would form a team to run the business and pay off £380m of its debts.

He told The Sun: "You have 25,000 staff at Woolworths and there must be a way of trying to save this business.

"It's late in the day - but there's still a possibility. We're considering a number of options."

Woolworth's was part of Sir Geoff's Kingfisher empire before being demerged in 2001 and has struggled to re-establish a corporate identity ever since.

Sir Geoff, who is now in his mid-60s, stepped down in 2003 but has remained a high profile figure working with a number of companies and organizations including the BRC.

However, The Sun goes on to report Sir Geoff's rescue bid could struggle as the big supermarket chains seem increasingly likely to break up Woolies between them.

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