Julian Graves is a health food retailer, with 255 stores operating in the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 and the Republic Of Ireland

Republic of Ireland

Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...

. They sell health foods, a limited range of kitchenware, baking ingredients and a variety of confectionery items. NBTY

NBTY

NBTY, Inc., formerly known as Nature's Bounty, Inc., is a manufacturer of vitamins and nutritional supplements which are distributed under many third party brands in the United States and internationally. Its name was changed from Nature's Bounty, Inc. to NBTY, Inc...

 who own rival chain Holland & Barrett

Holland & Barrett

Holland & Barrett is a chain of health food shops with over 600 stores in the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, South Africa, Singapore and Malta. The company also has stores in The Netherlands, where they trade as "De Tuinen".-Ownership:...

 reached an agreement to purchase the company in September 2008 from Baugur Group

Baugur Group

Baugur Group was an Icelandic investment company. The group applied for bankruptcy protection in February 2009, after placing its UK arm in administration.- History :...

. Following an investigation by the Office of Fair Trading

Office of Fair Trading

The Office of Fair Trading is a not-for-profit and non-ministerial government department of the United Kingdom, established by the Fair Trading Act 1973, which enforces both consumer protection and competition law, acting as the UK's economic regulator...

 and the UK Competition Commission

Competition Commission

The Competition Commission is a non-departmental public body responsible for investigating mergers, markets and other enquiries related to regulated industries under competition law in the United Kingdom...

, the merger was approved in August 2009.