Fans of Poundland will know all too well that it’s hardly even Poundland anymore. Gone are the days when you knew exactly how much everything costs – you’ve got to check the labels these days to make sure you’re not being charged a fiver. Despite that, there is still one thing it appears you can get for just a quid: the shop itself.
That’s not a joke. Last week the entirety of Poundland was sold by its owners Pepco to a US investment company called Gordon Brothers (who used to own Laura Ashley) for a ‘nominal fee’ of a single pound.
This week a huge restructuring has been announced, with 68 stores set to close. A further 70 Poundlands could shut as a result of the brand seeking rent reductions and lease expirations, and in total more than 1,000 jobs could be at risk.
Poundland currently employs over 16,000 people across 792 branches in the UK and Ireland. The chain hasn’t yet announced which shops will close.
The sale of Poundland didn’t come as a huge shock, as the company has been struggling from low profits for the past year. The low cost is not quite the deal that it appears at face value – it could cost the new owners up to £100 million to get the brand back on its feet.
Pepco maintains that this does not mean that it’s the end of Poundland, stating that it ‘remains a key player in UK discount retail, with millions of customers annually and a well-loved brand and proposition’, and adding that this is simply a move to ‘[simplify] the group and [focus] on our successful Pepco business.’
Poundland managing director Barry Williams said of the closures: ‘It’s no secret that we have much work to do to get Poundland back on track.’
‘While Poundland remains a strong brand, serving 20m-plus shoppers each year, our performance for a significant period has fallen short of our high standards and action is needed to enable the business to return to growth.’
We have a complete list of every high-street chain that’s closing stores this year – you can find that here.
Did you see that the northern Eden Project is expected to open by 2028?
The UK’s first cabybara café is opening in Norfolk.
Stay in the loop: sign up to our free Time Out UK newsletter for the latest UK news and the best stuff happening across the country.