Nottinghamshire councillors fear Wilko closures are having ‘domino effect’ on high streets

Wilko stores closed across the county closed after the Worksop-based national retailer went into administration in August 2023.

An estimated 2,000 people later lost their jobs across these stores and at the Worksop headquarters and distribution centre.

Four of the Nottinghamshire stores – in Arnold, Hucknall, Kimberley and Worksop – have now re-opened as other businesses and two-thirds of the staff made redundant are back in work.

Of the remaining stores, the one in Cartlon is currently closed to allow Farmfoods to expand into it from their adjoining business.

The stores in Beeston, Bulwell, Mansfield, Newark, Retford, Nottingham and Sutton remain closed but with interest being shown in most of them.

The headquarters and large distribution centre in Worksop was taken over by DHL in December, with the majority of staff who working for Wilko re-employed there.

Nottinghamshire councillors met on March 14 to discuss the authority’s response to Wilko’s collapse.

Members shared fears about the knock-on effect if a major high street name was lost without replacement.

Coun Boyd Elliott (Con) said: “Whenever a large business goes, we will be there to support staff.

“We’ve learnt that not just the branches of Wilko were affected – there’s an effect on smaller business.

“In Arnold, Wilko is at end of high street near small independent coffee shops.

"They lost footfall and struggled during that period.

“Thankfully, B&M have gone in and footfall is now greater than ever.”

Coun Kate Foale (Lab) worried about the effect on Wilko’s former supply chain, saying: “There will be many small and medium-sized businesses that are really struggling.”

Coun Dave Shaw (Ash Ind) said: “We are fortunate in Hucknall that The Range is opening (in the old Wilko building).

"We have a ‘dumbbell effect’ with two large shops and people migrating between them.

“But the big Wilko is still closed in Sutton and that will have a domino effect on the shops around it.”

He added that losing major names without a replacement had been a ‘disaster’ for other towns.