Investment firm buys General Nutrition Cos.

PITTSBURGH (AP) -- An investment firm has bought vitamin-retailer General Nutrition Cos. for $750 million.
Apollo Management officials have not disclosed their plans for the GNC chain of more than 5,000 stores. However, Apollo often operates by keeping a low profile and working with management to improve the performance of the companies it buys. GNC has about 600 employees at its Pittsburgh headquarters.
Royal Numico, a Dutch company, paid $2.5 billion for GNC four years ago in a move to try and dominate the U.S. vitamin market. But debt and slow sales forced Royal Numico to shop for a new buyer.