Both Bedford Wilko stores NOT on the list of closures

Joint administrators for Wilko have confirmed 52 stores across the country will close – but Bedford isn’t on the list.

Today (Wednesday), administrators have entered into an agreement to provide B&M with the option to acquire up to 51 properties – which includes Bedford – after the administration trading period concludes at those sites.

The Bedford stores are in the High Street and Interchange Retail Park.

Interestingly, Bedford already has three B&M stores – in Midland Road, Riverfield Drive and Alban Retail Park.

In a statement from the joint administrator, they have confirmed the remaining 52 stores do not form part of any ongoing interest in the Wilko store portfolio.

The closures will mean 1,016 staff redundancies, with a further 299 redundancies at the two distribution centres in Worksop and Newport.

The statement added: “We continue to explore all interest in the remainder of the business and are actively working with potential buyers.”