WILKO is set to shut its first shops this week as it prepares to close all of its 400 stores for goods.
The 90-year-old retailer will close 52 branches across tomorrow and Thursday after failing to secure a deal to rescue the stores.
Administrators from PwC said last week the closures will lead to 1,016 redundancies.
Wilko was dealt a further blow this morning after HMV owner Doug Putman confirmed he has failed in a bid to strike a deal to buy around 200 stores.
A source later told The Sun that all of the high street retailer's stores will close by early October.
It means redundancies now look likely for all 12,500 staff at Wilko.
READ MORE IN MONEY
All 400 Wilko stores to close by October after final rescue bid fails
ALL Wilko stores to close and disappear from high street for good within weeks
The GMB union said on that Wilko’s warehouses in Worksop and Newport are now both due to close on Friday, September 15.
It added that a further 124 stores are due to close next week, with these set to shut between September 19 and September 21.
The failure to secure a deal means that remaining offers on the table are only likely to purchase a number of Wilko stores, and are not expected to include workers.
PwC has already agreed a roughly £13 million deal to sell up to 51 Wilko stores to rival B&M.
Most read in Money
SHUTTING SHOP
All 400 Wilko stores to close by October after final rescue bid fails
WILKO WOE
ALL Wilko stores to close and disappear from high street for good within weeks
CHOCO WIN
Quality Street brings back discontinued flavour after 20 years
WIN BIG
Rare McDonald’s Monopoly pieces to look for as code expiry date revealed
But the name Wilko could still live on as rival discounter The Range is in talks to take on the Wilko brand.
A deal would not include any shop locations, it's understood, but could see the Wilko name used online or for certain products, though details are still being finalised.
Meanwhile, Poundland is also working out a deal to take on around 70 locations, sources say, but they would not stay as Wilko stores.
Below is a full list of Wilko shops that will close tomorrow:
- Acton, London
- Aldershot, Hampshire
- Barking, London
- Bishop Auckland, County Durham
- Bletchley, Milton Keynes
- Brownhills, Walsall
- Camberley, Surrey
- Cardiff Bay Retail Park
- Falmouth, Cornwall
- Harpurhey, Manchester
- Irvine, North Ayrshire
- Liverpool Edge Lane
- Llandudno, Wales
- Lowestoft, Suffolk
- Morley, Leeds
- Nelson, Lancashire
- Port Talbot, Wales
- Putney, London
- Stafford, Staffordshire
- Tunbridge Wells, Kent
- Wakefield, 121 Kirkgate
- Weston-super-Mare, Somerset
- Westwood Cross Retail Park, Broadstairs, Kent
- Winsford, Cheshire
Plus the following Wilko shops will close on Thursday, September 14:
- Ashford, Kent
- Avonmeads, Bristol
- Banbury, Oxfordshire
- Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria
- Basildon, Essex
- Belle Vale, Liverpool
- Burnley, Lancashire
- Clydebank, Glasgow
- Cortonwood, Barnsley
- Dagenham, Essex
- Dewsbury, West Yorkshire
- Eccles, Greater Manchester
- Folkestone, Kent
- Great Yarmouth, Norfolk
- Hammersmith, London
- Huddersfield, West Yorkshire
- Morriston, Swansea
- New Malden, South-west London
- North Shields, Tyne and Wear
- Queen Street, Cardiff
- Rhyl, Wales
- Southampton West Quay
- St Austell, Cornwall
- Stockport, Greater Manchester
- Truro, Cornwall
- Uttoxeter, Staffordshire
- Walsall
- Woking, Surrey
Wilko tumbled into administration early last month after it came under pressure from weak consumer spending and debts to suppliers.
Chief executive officer, Mark Jackson, said that the company had "left no stone unturned" in a bid to save the chain.
Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing [email protected].
You can also join our new Sun Money Facebook group to share stories and tips and engage with the consumer team and other group members.
Source: Read Full Article
