Rebel florists have announced they are confident they will be able to derail an agreed buyout of Interflora by private equity group 3i.
More than 100 members of Interflora attended a meeting near Coventry at the weekend to discuss plans to stop the deal going through.
Supporters of the management accused the rebels of having no alternative plans to save the business from losing market share to the likes of Tesco and Marks & Spencer. Meanwhile the dissidents accused the board, who will take a 14 per cent share in the new business, of selling Interflora on the cheap.
The rebels have just over two weeks to persuade the florist members to derail a deal which will see the company handed over to an outsider for the first time in its 80-year history.
The board needs approval from 75 per cent of the members in a vote scheduled to take place on January 23. The rebels are anticipating the vote to be around 50-50.
