Poundland shuts 149 stores, cuts 2,200 jobs and focuses on £1 items
Poundland has shut 149 stores with the loss of 2,200 jobs under a rescue shake-up launched after challenging trading conditions and unpopular clothing ranges sent it into the red.The company, which was itself bought for £1 from Pepco Group by the US restructuring specialist Gordon Brothers in June last year, said it had refocused on £1 items, with 60% of its stock now at that price.It is also relaunching its Pep & Co clothing brand after a switch to ranges supplied by its former parent group hit sales.Adult clothing will be in stores by the end of this month, with children’s and baby wear arriving in February.Poundland said underlying profits had more than doubled to £17.
3m in the three months to 28 December compared with the same period a year before.The number of items sold was up 2% but sales at established stores fell 2.9%, even excluding categories it no longer sells.The closures are part of a restructure first announced last June after the retailer dived to a £51m pre-tax loss in 2024.The plans included shutting at least 68 stores and up to 80 more, cutting rents, stopping online sales, ditching its Perks loyalty app, and no longer offering frozen and most chilled foods.
Poundland’s frozen and digital distribution centre at Darton, South Yorkshire, and its national distribution centre at Springvale in Bilston, West Midlands, have now closed, while two other distribution centres, in Wigan and Harlow, continue to operate,The company, which was founded in 1990 with its first store in Burton upon Trent, has faced a tough trading period in recent years amid rising costs on business rates, energy, staff and heavy competition from the likes of The Range, B&M Home Bargains, Savers as well as supermarkets and low price online specialists such as Temu and Shein,There has already been some consolidation in the discount retail sector including the demise of the major player Wilko in 2023, which was left with only a few stores after The Range snapped up the brand,Poundland’s rival, Poundstretcher, was bought in 2024 by Majestic Wine’s owner, Fortress,Another rival, Poundworld, closed its 350 stores in 2018 and Poundland bought its rival 99p Stores in 2015.
Barry Williams, the managing director of Poundland, said the significant store closures were now finished, adding: “We have clear indications from the work we’ve already done, that we’re on the right track.“While there’s been significant progress as we re-focus and re-energise the business with lower prices and a sharper offer, we know we still have much to do.Our focus on our costs has, without doubt, given us a platform for future growth, but no sustainable turnaround can be based on cost management alone.”He said customers had indicated that they wanted a simpler offer which “keeps its promise of amazing value … That’s why our focus in 2026 will be on delivering the kind of ranges and price simplicity our customers want right across the store – in clothing, homewares as well as our core grocery aisles.”Gordon Brothers, a former owner of Laura Ashley, said it would invest up to £80m in Poundland to help turn the business around.
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