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Lowe’s is asking a federal court to require Woolworths to be transparent about how it is selling the assets of their joint venture in Australia.
Woolworths, Lowe’s business partner in Australia, is rushing to sell properties and masses of product before closing dozens of their Masters Home Improvement stores by Dec. 11, according to a Sept. 12 article from The Australian Business Review.
The business journal reports this week that Lowe’s is arguing that Woolworths has not been open about the value of the properties it is selling, the details of selling their Home Timber & Hardware company to a competitor or why Woolworths is keeping about a dozen Masters Home Improvement store locations.
Recent court documents show that Lowe’s and Woolworths have been fighting in court. The argument centers around Woolworths’ “plans to keep 13 Masters sites and its alleged attempts to use the threat of insolvency to gain the consent of Lowe’s for its plans,” according to the Sept. 20 article from The Australian Business Review.
Lowe’s is looking for more information about the value of the properties and business segments Woolworths is selling. This comes after months of the two companies disagreeing on how much Lowe’s one-third stake in the company is worth, the article says.
Besides the failed home improvement venture, Woolworths operates businesses in the supermarket, liquor and hospitality sectors.
