Poundland has confirmed it will close 68 stores as part of a major restructure. The budget chain will also seek rent reductions at a number of other locations.
On top of this, will also look to close its distribution centre at Darton, South Yorkshire and its national distribution centre at Bilston in the West Midlands in early 2026. It has not yet been revealed how many staff will be impacted.
The restructuring plan would need to be approved by the High Court before it can go ahead. Poundland will also stop selling frozen food, and its website will stop taking orders, although shoppers will still be able to browse products and deals online.
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Poundland, which is owned by Pepco Group, currently has 792 stores and employs around 16,000 people. It expects its total store numbers to eventually be reduced to between 650 to 700, meaning further store closures could be announced in the future.
It comes after the struggling retailer was to investment firm Gordon Brothers, the former owner of Laura Ashley.
Barry Williams, managing director of Poundland said in a statement today: “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.
“It’s sincerely regrettable that this plan includes the closure of stores and distribution centres, but it’s necessary if we’re to achieve our goal of securing the future of thousands of jobs and hundreds of stores.
“It goes without saying that if our plans are approved, we will do all we can to support colleagues who will be directly affected by the changes.”
There are several Poundland branches that are scheduled to close this summer, with these dates already confirmed before the deal with Gordon Brothers was announced. You can find a .
It comes after Poundland reported revenues dropped by 6.5% to €985million (£830million) for the six months to March.
In a statement issued last week about the sale of Poundland, Stephan Borchert, Pepco Group chief executive, said: “This transaction will strongly support our accelerated value creation programme by simplifying the group and focusing on our successful Pepco business.
“Poundland remains a key player in UK discount retail, with millions of customers annually and a well-loved brand and proposition.
“We want to sincerely thank all the Poundland team for their ongoing commitment and contribution to the group and wish Barry Williams and his team all the best for the future.”
