All 1,400 staff working within the Argos business will transfer to Swift, Sainsbury’s said. The move will allow Sainsbury’s to focus on its core food and grocery operations, but the deal means it will sell Argos for a fraction of the £1.4 billion it paid for the high street retailer in 2016. The deal also comes after it emerged in September last year that Sainsbury’s had held talks to sell Argos to Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com, though the discussions swiftly collapsed. “Richard, Trevor and Matt understand and value the Argos brand, share our values and will accelerate Argos’s transformation through their dedicated expertise and long-term investment.” “We welcome the commitment to keeping the model of store in stores, standalone stores and local fulfilment centres and that any changes will be handled fairly, transparently and in consultation with employees and their union representatives,” he added.