B&M has agreed to acquire up to 51 Wilko stores in a deal worth £13m.
The Liverpool-headquartered discount retail giant said the consideration is fully funded from its existing cash reserves and the acquisition is not expected to be conditional on any regulatory clearances.
It added that an update on when the stores will be reopened will be provided in the interim results announcement on November 9.
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B&M has been interested in snapping up part of the stricken chain since it entered administration last month.
Tania Clench, legal director in the restructuring and insolvency team at Cripps, said: "Despite today's deal, the future of the remaining Wilko stores (350+) still remains in doubt, meaning thousands of high street workers still face losing their jobs, and unsecured creditors still don’t know where they stand.
"The dialogue with Doug Putman appears still to be ongoing, but it looks like if that deal is to be reached, fewer stores than originally anticipated will be acquired.
"So, after payment of the Administrators’ fees and paying out Hilco as the secured creditor, what will there be left to pay preferential and/or unsecured creditors?
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"It is too early to tell - which means unsecured creditors will be wary of their next steps: Wilko is reportedly in £40m debt to Hilco and needs at least another £20m for ordering new stock, and yet, looking at the empty shelves in many of Wilko’s stores, it does not look like stock is being replenished. Understandably, suppliers will want to ensure they are being paid for the supply of stock.
"Anyone who takes on Wilko will need to invest time and cash in bringing the stores and the brand in line with what its rivals are offering – joining up the online and in-store operations, revamping the look of their stores whilst still safeguarding the shopping experience many look to have at Wilko.
"Wilko’s retail business proposition will need to be clear going forward if the business is to survive and it is clear that Wilko is a very much loved and valued brand by many up and down the country.
"For this reason, I would not be surprised to see other potential bids for parts of the business coming through and with these, hopefully, jobs being saved."
The move comes after the first round of potentially thousands of layoffs at the failed retailer was expected to start on Monday even as hopes of a rescue deal for parts of the business remain.
Administrators confirmed last week that 269 people in the company's Worksop support centre would be having their last day with the business.
Redundancies at the company's Worksop and Newport warehouses are also due to start early this week.
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The administrators did not confirm how many warehouse staff would lose their jobs, but around 1,296 people are thought to work there.
The GMB union said last week it had asked for redundancies to start with volunteers.
There are still hopes that the administrators, who work for PwC, will be able to hammer out a deal that could save thousands of jobs at Wilko stores across the country.
They are reportedly in talks with a group of potential rescuers led by Doug Putman, the Canadian businessman who took over HMV in 2019.
His business Sunrise Records bought the struggling music retailer just before the pandemic and has managed to turn it round to become profitable again.
The bid that Mr Putman is representing will, it has been reported, save around 300 of Wilko's 400 shops and save around 8,000 jobs of the 12,500 that Wilko previously employed – but only if it is successful.
To be so, the businessman will need to convince the administrators at PwC who last week ruled out an offer from a private equity firm that had promised to save all Wilko jobs.
The firm, called M2 Capital, appeared to miss a deadline to prove it had the means to go through with the deal on Wednesday afternoon.
After that the administrators announced that redundancies would restart.
The Sunday Times reported over the weekend that the deal led by Mr Putman had won backing from the Pension Protection Fund as well as other major creditors, including landlords and suppliers.
The 90-year-old retailer was placed under administration a little under a month ago.
It had faced five years of declining turnover as high streets were placed under pressure, not least by the Covid-19 lockdowns.