Poundland in peril: how rampant inflation and price wars left £1 stores exposed
Source: The Guardian ·
With the chain on the brink of administration, its low-profile US owners face questions about their conduct“It was a very successful and simple proposition,” laments one former Poundland boss. With every product in the shop sold at £1, and the price in its name, its proposition to shoppers was the clearest of any UK high street chain.Now the UK’s first and biggest nationwide single-price…
From the source
“It was a very successful and simple proposition,” laments one former Poundland boss. With every product in the shop sold at £1, and the price in its name, its proposition to shoppers was the clearest of any UK high street chain. Now the UK’s first and biggest nationwide single-price retailer could disappear amid heavy competition and inflation that has eaten into its ability to offer bargains. Its potential collapse has brought distress for its up to 12,000 staff in the run-up to Christmas, and as shoppers head to the chain for Halloween costumes and treats. Meanwhile, its low-profile owners are facing questions from the prime minister over their behaviour in the week his government’s budget attempted to offer support to the high street. Poundland’s future hangs in the balance – and not for the first time – after the 36-year-old retailer filed a notice of intention to appoint administrators at the high court on Thursday, with the advisory firm AlixPartners lined up to run the…