Big discount retailer opens seven sites in former Wilko stores – see the full list and if there’s one near you

A BIG discount retailer has opened its seventh site in a former Wilko store.

Poundstretcher is breathing new life into the site of an ex-Wilko store, five months after all shops closed for good.

A big discount retailer has opened its 7th site in a former Wilko storeCredit: Alamy

Brits were left brokenhearted when Wilko announced all of its 400 shops would be closing last October.

At the time, The Sun revealed Poundtsretcherwould not be making a bid to buy the failed high street chain.

Over a hundred sites were snapped up by rival discounters B&M and Poundland, picking up 51 and 71 respectively.

But since Wilko’s collapse, Poundstretcher has also quietly been moving into the empty shopfronts.

What else is happening to Wilko stores?

The news comes as Wilko itself is continuing its return to the UK high street after collapsing into administration last summer.

Two shops are set to open before Easter, cutting the ribbon in days.

Since December 2023, the Wilko name has officially been back on the high street after new stores opened their doors to customers.

CDS Superstores, now trading as The Range and Wilko, revealed late last year that it was relaunching the chain across high streets.

Three former Wilko sites have since reopened, welcoming customers for the first time in December.

Here is the full list of sites which have been announced so far and when they opened or are due to open:

Unit A, Armada Centre, Mayflower Street, Plymouth – December 1, 2023
Unit 100, Guildhall Shopping Centre, Exeter – December 1, 2023
141/147 Arndale Centre, Luton – December 8, 2023
The Maltings, St Albans – March 29
Parkgate Shopping Park, Rotherham – March 29
The Dolphin Centre, Poole – TBC

Following its collapse shoppers were relieved to hear the brand had been scooped up by The Range in a £5million deal – meaning the name would live on.

The discounter later revealed it would be selling Wilko products in its stores, before then announcing the return of brick-and-mortar shops.

A number of rivals swooped in to buy out some of Wilko’s store portfolio though, including Poundland, which purchased 71 stores.

These sites have now all opened the sites.

B&M also agreed to buy up to 51 locations as part of a £13million deal and has since opened several.

Why are retailers closing stores?

RETAILERS have been feeling the squeeze since the pandemic, while shoppers are cutting back on spending due to the soaring cost of living crisis.

High energy costs and a move to shopping online after the pandemic are also taking a toll, and many high street shops have struggled to keep going.

The high street has seen a whole raft of closures over the past year, and more are coming.

The number of jobs lost in British retail dropped last year, but 120,000 people still lost their employment, figures have suggested.

Figures from the Centre for Retail Research revealed that 10,494 shops closed for the last time during 2023, and 119,405 jobs were lost in the sector.

It was fewer shops than had been lost for several years, and a reduction from 151,641 jobs lost in 2022.

The centre’s director, Professor Joshua Bamfield, said the improvement is “less bad” than good.

Although there were some big-name losses from the high street, including Wilko, many large companies had already gone bust before 2022, the centre said, such as Topshop owner Arcadia, Jessops and Debenhams.

“The cost-of-living crisis, inflation and increases in interest rates have led many consumers to tighten their belts, reducing retail spend,” Prof Bamfield said.

“Retailers themselves have suffered increasing energy and occupancy costs, staff shortages and falling demand that have made rebuilding profits after extensive store closures during the pandemic exceptionally difficult.”

Alongside Wilko, which employed around 12,000 people when it collapsed, 2023’s biggest failures included UK Flooring Direct, Planet Organic and Tile Giant.

The Centre for Retail Research said most stores were closed because companies were trying to reorganise and cut costs rather than the business failing.

However, experts have warned there will likely be more failures this year as consumers keep their belts tight and borrowing costs soar for businesses.

Last year, around 14% of insolvencies were in retail businesses, according to official figures.

What happened to Wilko?

The historic chain fell into administration in August more than 90 years after it began as a single hardware shop in Leicester.

The closure of its remaining 400 stores and the loss of 9,100 staff was confirmed by administrators PwC after attempts to save the company came to an end.

The retailer had remained a stalwart on the high street for many years and had managed to navigate challenges – like reduced footfall – that rivals like Woolworths weren’t able to.

Wilko reported strong profits for most of the 2010s and saw its turnover peak at more than £1.6billion in 2018.

But by this point, it had seen profitability begin to decline amid pressure on high streets.

Turnover has decreased in every year since, as it saw challenges in the sector exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Shoppers were also tightening their budgets in the face of higher energy costs and mortgage rates during the cost of living crisis.

Administrators for the company at PwC said these factors contributed to “cashflow pressure and a deterioration in trading”.

Wilko also saw shopper numbers drift as it faced increased competition from rivals such as B&M and Home Bargains.

These shops have continued to grow, with shoppers going in droves to their stores which are often based in out-of-town retail parks.

Retail parks have seen footfall rise sharply in recent years to the detriment of many high streets, where Wilko has the vast majority of its sites.

Wilko launched a turnaround plan in early 2023.

It said it had seen “real progress” against many areas in its plan and made significant cost savings but was unable to improve its finances quickly enough to avoid insolvency.