Poundland buys 71 Wilko stores after B&M deal as shoppers hunt for bargains before final closures

Poundland’s owners have agreed to buy up to 71 Wilko shops (Picture: Rex/PA)

The owners of Poundland have agreed a deal to buy up to 71 Wilko stores.

Administrators have confirmed Pepco has agreed to buy up to 71 branches of the collapsed retailer.

The ex-Wilko branches will be rebranded under the Poundland name, and they’ve said they can’t guarantee all jobs at those locations will be saved, but they will ‘prioritise’ the recruitment of ex-Wilko staff.

The leases for the shops are expected to transfer to Poundland in ‘early autumn’. This would add to the more than 800 existing Poundland shops.

All of Wilko’s shops are set to close by early October, with some closing their doors this week.

Joint administrator Edward Williams said: ‘Alongside the previously announced agreement with B&M, we’re confident this sale will create a platform for future employment opportunities for people including current Wilko team members at up to 122 locations.

‘We will continue to engage with other retailers around any interest in other Wilko sites and are confident of completing a sale of the brand and intellectual property within the coming days.’

Poundland managing director Barry Williams said: ‘In the coming weeks we will work quickly with landlords so we can open these stores as Poundlands with the new ranges that have been pivotal to our recent development.

Shelves are emptying at branches across the country (Picture: PA) A number of branches are set to close this week, with more to close by early October (Picture: PA)

‘And once that process is complete, we will ensure a significant number of the Wilko colleagues will join our Poundland team.

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‘We know how valued Wilko colleagues have been in scores of communities across the UK and we look forward to offering them opportunities to join our family.

‘We recognise the last few weeks have been difficult for them and we will move quickly to secure new consents from landlords so we can offer them the certainty they deserve.

‘The Wilko stores will accelerate our existing transformation programme, offering amazing value for consumers, providing growth opportunities for suppliers and supporting employment in the high streets, shopping centres and retail parks customers love.’

Yesterday administrators revealed another 9,100 Wilko staff will lose their jobs after talks with HMV owner Doug Putman failed.

B&M is set to buy 52 Wilko branches in a £13 million deal.

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