B&M to acquire up to 51 Wilko’s properties

Administrators from PwC are also in negotiations with a deal that would save 300 of the business’s stores from Doug Putman, who owns of HMV and Toys R Us in Canada. However, these talks have reportedly run into problems as some big suppliers – including Unilever and Procter & Gamble – have said they want their debts repaid to guarantee supplying Wilko’s stores.  

Wilko fell into administration last month after the firm – which was founded nearly 100 years ago – was unable to secure additional investment. The retail chain also saw a deal from M2 Capital, worth a reported £90m and would have guaranteed jobs for all its staff for up to two years – fall through after a failure to provide proof of funding.   

Alongside Putman, administrators are also in talks with other potential suitors including Poundland, Home Bargains and the Range about taking on some of Wilko’s stores.  

Reflecting on this, Hargreaves Lansdown’s head of money and markets, Susannah Streeter said: “At the most, it looks like a scaled down bid for the chain will be clinched, which would save the famous red and white frontage but Wilko’s presence on the high street would be a pale comparison to its heady days of success.”