Home » UK Business News » Wilko stores set for high street comeback before Christmas

Wilko stores set for high street comeback before Christmas

By Nithya Bose in UK Business News, posted October 27, 2023

Standalone Wilko stores are set to return to the high street and retail parks before the year-end.

The move comes as SDS Superstores, the owner of The Range, takes aggressive steps to reintroduce the brand.

Following the acquisition of Wilko's brand and intellectual property for £5 million.

The parent company now intends to embark on a national roll-out.

It’ll cover England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland for the first time.

Five new concept stores, including locations in Plymouth and Exeter, will open before Christmas.

A larger-scale roll-out is planned throughout 2024.

Former Wilko employees will be given priority in the recruitment process for these new stores.

SDS Superstores recently relaunched the Wilko website and introduced the brand's products into The Range's 200 stores.

"Huge love" for Wilko

Alex Simpkin, CEO of SDS Superstores, said: “For the majority of its 93 years, Wilko was an incredibly successful business that gave its customers exactly what they needed to get their home and garden jobs sorted.

“It was their advanced own-brand capabilities that encouraged us to invest in the brand and wilko.com and we’re excited to now be selling Wilko products online once more and across our 200 stores network.”

“The public reaction to the loss of Wilko stores was undeniable.

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“It’s clear that there’s a huge love for Wilko and we’ve seen an encouraging demand for the return of its own-brand products.

“That’s why we’ve taken the decision to reintroduce Wilko back to many of the high streets and communities that it used to so proudly serve.

“Our team from Wilko that joined us through the acquisition has shown true resilience, they’ve set to work to integrate the best parts of Wilko into The Range’s operational systems.

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