Pentland Group has a 49 percent stake in a consortium that will acquire Hunter Rubber Company, a 150-year-old Scottish manufacturer of Wellington boots, salvaging it from court-supervised administration. The consortium includes a shirtmaker and is led by Jonathan Marland, a former risk management adviser and insurance broker who is currently treasurer of the Conservative Party. KPMG had received more than 100 expressions of interest and ten bids from various interests including Hevea, the Dutch-based group that markets Dunlop rubber boots and Viking footwear. The Hunter brand, which was in the hands of many family members, has seen its annual sales whittle down to only £8.3 million (€12.2m-$15.6m). The brand is marketed in the Germanic countries by Euro Brand Management, the agency run by Luigi Grosso, which has just stopped selling Timberland’s new Mion brand.