Poundland
 |
|
| Private limited company | |
| Industry | Retail |
| Founded | April 1990 |
| Founder | Dave Dodd and Steven Smith |
| Headquarters | Willenhall, West Midlands, United Kingdom |
|
Number of locations
|
896 (2016) |
|
Key people
|
Andy Bond (CEO) |
| Products | Groceries, consumer goods, DIY, electrical |
| Revenue | £1.31 billion (2016) |
| £56.9 million (2016) | |
| Profit | £-12.0 million (2016) |
| Owner | Steinhoff International |
|
Number of employees
|
18,000 (2016) |
| Subsidiaries | Dealz |
| Website | www |
Poundland is a British variety store chain that sells most items in its stores for £1 and stocks over 3,000 products. Like many of its rivals, Poundland operate a constantly rotating product line, some of which are brand name and clearance as well as many own brand. The chain employs 18,000 staff and their company union is the Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers (USDAW).
The first pilot store opened in December 1990 following numerous rejections by landlords who had reservations about allowing a single-price store to operate, fearing it could adversely affect the local competition. The company estimated in 2016 that it served 7 million customers in an average week, aided by a strong customer base of predominantly female shoppers every week in the C1, C2, D and E categories (the working classes in a system of demographic classification used in the United Kingdom).
The retailer expanded into Europe during the latter half of 2011, first opening a store in the Republic of Ireland and now operating a subsidiary chain of discount stores in mainland Europe under the name Dealz. Poundland acquired closest rival 99p Stores in 2015, leaving Poundworld as their closest competitor, yet in 2016 the company was described as "struggling" after its acquisition of 99p Stores following a drop in share price of over 50%, before being acquired in August 2016 by Steinhoff for £610m.
Claiming to have introduced the concept of single-price retailing, Dave Dodd and Stephen Smith founded the retail chain in April 1990 with a starting capital of just £50,000 and a turnover of £13,000 on their first trading day. The first pilot store opened in December 1990 in the Octagon Centre, Burton upon Trent, after being turned down by big landlords who had reservations about allowing such a store to operate, given they could easily undercut every retailer in sight. It was soon followed by other stores, most notably on The High Street, Meadowhall.
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Wikipedia