Poundland scraps nine former Wilko stores months after reopening

Poundland has shut nine of its former Wilko shops within months of reopening them, under a “constant review” of its estate.

A spokesperson for the discount retailer said affected workers had been offered positions a nearby shops in all cases.

The move comes after the business’s owner Pepco Group agreed to take control of up to 71 Wilko store leases from administrator PwC under a last-minute deal in September.

Poundland began reopening the shops with its own branding within weeks and relaunched 64 of the stores, hiring 960 ex-Wilko staff members by mid-December.


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However, the number of Poundland’s former Wilko sites has now dropped to just 55, after recent store closures in areas including Alfreton, Bishop’s Stortford and Ealing.

Earlier this month, Pepco Group warned its trading environment remained “challenging” as it reported a dip in like-for-likes following a tough comparative period last year.

The company posted an 11% jump in group sales to £2.73bn (€3.2bn) on a constant currency basis for the six months to 31 March. However, on a like-for-like basis, sales fell 2.5%.

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