All 400 Wilko stores to disappear from UK high streets next month
All of Wilko’s 400 stores on the UK high street are set to close by early October after an attempt from the owner of HMV to make a rescue deal collapsed, the GMB union has said.
The union, which represents more than 3,000 Wilko staff, made the update after a meeting with the retailer’s administrators on Monday (11 September) morning.
It means redundancies now look likely for all 12,500 staff at the high street chain with it set to vanish completely by early next month.
The union said on Monday that Wilko’s warehouses in Worksop and Newport are now both due to close on Friday next week.
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It added that a further 124 stores are due to close next week, with these set to shut between 19 September and 21 September.
Wilko had already confirmed that 52 stores would shut this week which meant 1,016 direct job losses, with hundreds of other people losing their jobs across the well-known retailer.
Wilko went into administration last month and put the fate of its 400 stores at risk along with over 12,000 jobs.
At the time chief officer 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 a notice of intention.
“We’ll continue to progress discussions with interested parties with the aim of completing a transaction which preserves the business and will encourage those interested parties we’re in discussions with to move as fast as possible.
"We continue to believe that our robust turnaround plan, with significant re-stabilisation cost savings in progress, will deliver a profitable Wilko and maximise the significant opportunities that we know exist."
A deal has been secured to sell 51 stores to rival retailer B&M for £13 million, while Poundland is still in talks with administration overseers PwC to buy around 100 Wilko locations.
There has been other interest from rivals in buying some of Wilko's remaining stores or even the brand itself but as it stands no such bargain has yet been struck.
HMV's collapsed rescue attempt had been looking to buy up to 300 stores but the bid fell apart, with HMV owner Doug Putman calling it 'a great disappointment'.
It is not yet clear whether all of the jobs at stores which have been bought will be saved, or whether Wilko staff will get the first opportunity to apply for any jobs going at the locations.
Joe Harker