Poundland owner to take on up to 71 Wilko stores

The owner of Poundland has agreed to take on the leases of dozens of Wilko shops.

Pepco Group, which owns Poundland in the UK, is expected to convert up to 71 Wilko stores to the Poundland brand.

Poundland boss Barry Williams said it recognised the last few weeks had been difficult for Wilko workers.

In a statement, the company said that Wilko staff would have priority when applying for new jobs at the Poundland shops.

Wilko fell into administration in August as it struggled with sharp losses and a cash shortage.

It was founded in 1930 and by the 1990s became one of Britain's fastest-growing retailers.

But the discount chain has faced strong competition from competitors including B&M, Poundland and Home Bargains, as the high cost of living has pushed shoppers to seek out bargains.

Mr Williams, the managing director of Poundland, said the company it would work quickly with landlords in the coming weeks to get its new shops open once the administration process is wound up.

It said that the announcement would mark some "positive news for customers and those high streets that faced the loss of an important retailer".

Rival B&M has also agreed to buy 51 of Wilko's buildings in a £13m deal, but it is understood the stores will not be run under the Wilko brand.

The 71 shops included in the deal with Pepco and the 51 stores taken on by B&M currently employ about 3,200 Wilko workers.

In a statement, the Poundland owner said that it expected the rebranded shops to open in the last few months of this year, although workers will not be transferred directly.

The deal will see the sites added to its 800 existing shops in the UK. The 71 store locations are:

Aberdare, Alfreton, Alnwick, Altrincham, Ammanford, Ashby, Barking, Bedminster, Beeston, Bicester, Bishop Stortford, Bletchley, Bolton, Brentwood, Brigg, Cambridge, Chepstow, Coalville, Cramlington, Droitwich, Eccles, Edmonton Green, Ellesmere Port, Ferndown, Gateshead, Grays, Greenock, Grimsby, Havant, Hayes, Headingley, Hessle Road - Hull, Hillsborough, Hitchin, Jarrow, Killingworth, Kimberley, Lee Circle, Leek, Leigh, Lichfield, Maidenhead, Matlock, Melton Mowbray, Nelson, Northallerton, Orton, Pembroke Dock, Peterlee, Pontefract, Pontypool, Redhill, Redruth, Ripley, Rugeley, Sale, Seaham, Selly Oak, Shrewsbury Darwin Centre, South Shields, Southport, Stafford, Stamford, Stockport, Thornaby, Wellington, Wembley, West Ealing, Wombwell, Worcester and Worksop, where Wilko's head office is located.

Pepco Group also owns other discount retailers, such as Dealz in Ireland and Poland.

It comes after administrators confirmed the group's remaining shops, warehouse and support centre workers are set to lose their jobs after a rescue bid by Canadian entrepreneur Doug Putman failed.

The billionaire owner of music retailer HMV had been trying to buy at least 100 Wilko shops but the deal fell through as rising costs complicated the deal.

Administrators said that they were confident the Poundland deal would "create a platform for future employment opportunities" for Wilko employees.

Edward Williams, joint administrator at PwC, said: "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."

Several other retailers and investors have reportedly been in talks with PwC about potentially buying the Wilko brand and website.