A privately owned wines and spirits merchant has been sold to Tesco’s wholesale division for an undisclosed sum.

Venus, the family business that owns the Gerry’s spirits shop in Soho, central London, has been bought by Booker as Tesco seeks to sell more premium beer, wines and spirits.

Laki Christoforou, the former boss of Wine Rack, founded Venus in 1975 and has built up the merchant, which supplies more than 2,000 spirits and other drinks to venues from its distribution centres in Tottenham in north London, Bristol and Leeds.

The entrepreneur is also a keen motor racing driver. He made it to the podium driving a Ford Escort model produced in the 1970s for the Heritage Touring Cup in 2017 and raced in a Ferrari 488 Challenge at the GT Cup Championship in 2019.

Venus will continue to operate under its existing brand when it merges with Booker and the company’s 140 employees will join the combined group.

Christoforou, 53, said: “I am incredibly proud of my team and the business we have built. This is an exciting opportunity for Venus to scale up and explore the growth potential across the UK. I am looking forward to working alongside Booker to realise the full potential that this partnership can bring.”

Tesco developed its capabilities in wholesaling with the acquisition of Booker for £3.7 billion in 2017 and the group has become a key supplier to the catering and hospitality sector. The acquisition of Venus will help to expand Booker’s reach with bars, restaurants and pubs. The deal comes after Tesco expanded its non-food offering last year when it bought Paperchase as the stationary retailer collapsed.

Clive Black, a retail analyst at Shore Capital, the broker, said: “Quite whether or not it will be distinguishable in future Booker updates is a debating matter, but it shows that Tesco has growth aspirations in a controlled and selective manner, as per the Paperchase purchase, which is important as the cash compounder carefully feeds the hopper. Hence we see merit and applaud the bolt-on purchase.”