WILKOS has filed a notice of intention to appoint administrators.
It was reported earlier in the year that the owners were considering a sale of the company.
Thousands of jobs are at risk at Wilko Ltd after the low-cost retailer signalled it was at risk of insolvency proceedings, reports Bloomberg.
The discount chain has 400 shops and employs about 12,000 people.
It is not yet clear what will happen to all stores, but administration puts them at risk.
Wilko chief executive Mark Jackson said: “While we can confirm we’ve had a significant level of interest, including indicative offers that we believe would meet all our financial criteria to recapitalise the business, at present, we don’t today have an offer that provides the necessary liquidity in the time we have available, given the mounting cash pressures we’re faced with.
“Unfortunately, with this in mind, today we’re having to take the difficult decision to file an NOI.”
This post first appeared on thesun.co.uk