Wilko to close 52 stores as it makes 1,300 redundancies

5th September 2023

Gemma Goldfingle

News

Wilko is to close 52 stores and make more than 1,300 staff redundant as talks continue with potential buyers for the remainder of the business.

Administrator PwC said it was “actively working with potential buyers”, however the 52 stores set to close “do not form part of any ongoing interest in the Wilko store portfolio”.

Some 1,016 workers are based in the stores impacted, which will close between Tuesday 12 and Thursday 14 September, with a further 299 staff set to be made redundant on Thursday at Wilko’s distribution centres in Worksop and Newport.

Joint administrator Edward Williams said: “In the absence of viable offers for the whole business, very sadly store closures and redundancies of team members from those stores are now necessary, in addition to the already announced redundancies at the support centre and distribution centres.

“We know this has been a deeply unsettling time for everyone concerned and would like to express our gratitude to all wilko team members for the dedication and support they have continued to give the business in the most trying of circumstances.”

The news come as B&M snapped up 51 stores from the collapsed retailer for £13m earlier today.

HMV owner Putman had put together a rescue deal that involved buying the majority of Wilko’s 400 shops, however, Sky News reported this morning that Gordon Brothers, which is providing financial backing for his deal, was unprepared to finance the acquisition.

Putman had planned to take on 300 stores. He is still thought to be in the running to buy around 200 Wilko stores.

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Wilko plunged into administration almost a month ago, placing 12,500 jobs at risk.

The retailer, which was founded in the 1930s in Leicester, had been fighting for its survival for the past year as it faced cashflow issues that hindered it buying stock for its stores.

It had been hurt by growing competition in the value sector in recent years as its prices fell out-of-kilter with fast-growing rivals such as B&M.

Many of those competitors had sought to buy part of the Wilko business after it plunged into administration, with Poundland, Home Bargains, and The Range all seeking to snap up stores.

The Range and online marketplace OnBuy also want to buy the Wilko brand.

The stores closing on Tuesday 12 September:

Acton
Aldershot
Barking
Bishop Auckland
Bletchley FF
Brownhills
Camberley
Cardiff Bay Retail Park
Falmouth
Harpurhey
Irvine
Liverpool Edge Lane
Llandudno
Lowestoft
Morley
Nelson
Port Talbot
Putney
Stafford
Tunbridge Wells
Wakefield
Weston-super-Mare
Westwood Cross
Winsford

The following stores set to close on Thursday 14 September:

Ashford
Avonmeads
Banbury
Barrow in Furness
Basildon
Belle Vale
Burnley (Relocation)
Clydebank
Cortonwood
Dagenham
Dewsbury
Eccles
Folkestone
Great Yarmouth
Hammersmith
Huddersfield
Morriston
New Malden
North Shields
Queen Street Cardiff
Rhyl
Southampton-West Quay
St Austell
Stockport
Truro
Uttoxeter
Walsall
Woking