A bid by the owner of HMV to save around 200 Wilko stores has fallen through following weeks of negotiations.
Canadian businessman Doug Putman, of Putman Investments, which owns music retailer HMV in the 海角视频 and Toys R Us in Canada, said he had been unable to strike a good enough deal to ensure the long-term success of his plans.
It was hoped that the acquisition would save several thousand roles at Wilko, which went into administration a month ago. Administrators at PwC were brought in after the chain – which had 400 stores and employed 12,500 people – was unable to secure fresh funding.
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Since then more than 1,300 redundancies have been announced at 52 stores which will close this week and some central office and distribution operations at its headquarters in Worksop and in Newport, Wales.
Last week discount retailer B&M agreed a £13m deal to buy 51 Wilko stores, although the rival discounter has not agreed to take on Wilko workers as part of those plans.
Mr Putman said: “It is with great disappointment that we can no longer continue in the purchase process for Wilko having worked with administrators and suppliers over several weeks to seek a viable way to rescue it as a going concern.
“We had financing in place and received the full support of PwC, Wilko management and staff representatives, which we are deeply thankful for considering what a challenging time it has been for them.
“However, commitment to overhauling the trading framework of the business with partners and the costs of running Wilko’s legacy operations infrastructure combined has meant that a stable foundation could not be secured to ensure long-term success for the business and its people in the way that we would have wanted.”
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Sky News has reported that the administrators are in talks with Poundland over a potential deal to offload about 100 stores.
Other high street chains including The Range and Home Bargains have also reportedly signalled their interest over potentially buying the Wilko brand or stores.
It said 24 of its shops will close on Tuesday September 12, with a further 28 shops due to shut on Thursday September 14.
Nadine Houghton, national officer for the GMB union, said: “Due to the incompetency of Wilko bosses the deal has now run out of time.
“If the owners had been transparent and honest, thousands of loyal Wilko workers may not now be in this awful position.
“This is another devastating blow for them, who have seen their lives and futures gambled on the whims of millionaires and billionaires.
“Wilko bosses should be ashamed that this once great family business now appears to be beyond saving.”