// Poundland will reopen 36 of its stores from Monday
// The discount chain kept most of branches open for essential open but closed 1/9 stores for lockdown
Poundland has announced it will reopen 36 of its stores that have been closed throughout the coronavirus pandemic.
The discount retailer said it would resume trading from these stores from Monday as part of the first phase of its plans to reopen all stores that have been “hibernating” since the lockdown.
While Poundland kept most of its branches open for essential shopping, it closed the doors of around one in nine stores when the lockdown began in March.
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It said these stores were largely sites where it had another branch nearby or were in shopping centres that had difficulty remaining open.
Poundland said it would gradually reopen the doors to its remaining stores in the UK and Ireland in the next few weeks in a process known as Operation Sleeping Beauty.
The retailer maintained that health and safety measures would operate in these stores as they have done in Poundland shops that remained open through the lockdown.
These measures include floor markers, marshals at doors to limit customer numbers, screens at checkouts, the closure of some checkouts to make social distancing easier and “rigorous hygiene routines”.
“We’ve never been prouder of our role as a retailer at the heart of communities and high streets,” Poundland retail director Austin Cooke, Poundland said.
“While safety has to come first, we’re delighted to be able to begin reopening hibernating Poundland stores to fully serve those communities across the UK with the essentials they need.”
The Poundland stores that will reopen on May 18 are:
Ayr Central
Basildon Eastgate
Belfast Castlecourt
Bootle
Bradford Westfield
Chatham Pentagon
Colchester St Johns
Cork Merchant Quay
Dublin Mary Street
Doncaster Wheatley retail park
Eastleigh Swan shopping centre
Enniskillen Erneside
Gateshead Metro Centre
Great Yarmouth Regent Road
Harrogate
Harrow St Anns Road
Ipswich
Kendal
Kingston upon Thames
Lakeside Thurrock
Lowestoft Britten
Maidstone Chequers shopping centre
Milton Keynes Centre
Mansfield Four Seasons
Mullingar Fairgreen Centre
Newport Gwent Kingsway
Newry Buttercrane
Newry Quays
Northampton Gold Street
Norwich Castle Mall
Romford Brewery retail park
Shrewsbury
Southend Royals
Sunderland High Street
Waltham Abbey
Wembley High Road
Meanwhile, earlier this week the government confirmed June 1 as the provisional date for non-essential retailers to begin a phased reopening.
Retailers were also provided with a new safety guidance by the government to help them prepare store re-openings next month.
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