Poundstretcher

History

Poundstretcher was established in 1981 by Paul Appell and Stephen Fearnley. It became a subsidiary of Brown & Jackson plc (originally a construction firm which can be traced back to 1923) in March 1989.

After selling Poundstretcher to Philip Harris, founders Paul Appell and Stephen Fearnley acquired control of a failing retail business, United News Shops, which they managed to revitalise. In March 2008, United News Shops was sold to WHSmith.

In 1995 Pepkor, South Africa's largest retailer, acquired a controlling stake in Brown & Jackson plc and refinanced it. Brown & Jackson expanded rapidly with What Everyone Wants and Your More Stores purchased in October 1997 and The Brunswick Warehouse in January 2000. During 2000 the group continued to expand organically, including its first overseas venture with the opening of 6 stores in Poland.

During 2002 the group embarked on a major restructuring. The board undertook to dispose of the trading subsidiaries other than Poundstretcher Ltd and this disposal was completed on 27 September 2002. In 2003 the company undertook a rebrand of company name to Instore plc. Poundstretcher stores were gradually being rebranded to ...instore, however in 2006, a new chief executive concluded that the rebranding was not working, and from June 2009, new stores were opened as Poundstretcher after Instore plc was acquired by Aziz Tayub. In September 2012, the group had 400 stores in the United Kingdom.

In May 2011, the company bought Alworths. On 6 February 2012, Poundstretcher acquired 20 stores from the UGO chain, after it was placed in administration. In April 2012, Poundstretcher opened a store at Madina Mall, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, the first outside the United Kingdom since the 2002 disposal of B&J Poland. In September 2012, it was announced that out of the 20 stores that were acquired, 14 were to close, and the remaining 6 most profitable outlets would remain as part of the group.

In 2018, after Poundworld was shut down, Poundstretcher began to open former stores under the Bargain Buys brand name, which was previously used by the former company. The trademark for Bargain Buys was claimed by Poundstretcher.

In August 2018, Channel 4 broadcast Saving Poundstretcher which focused on former Poundworld owner Chris Edwards's attempts to revitalise the chain. Edwards was dismissed from his role at the retailer by owner Aziz Tayub during the series, which attracted criticism from viewers.

In June 2020, the retailer explored the possibility of a company voluntary arrangement due to financial difficulties. It would achieve large profit increases in the following year.

In September 2023, the retailer began looking at acquiring Wilko locations, following the chain's administration. In December, Tristan Phillips, the former head of finance at Marks & Spencer, was promoted to be the retailer's chief executive.

in April 2024, Aziz Tayub sold Poundstretcher to Fortress Investment Group.

References

References

1. Pegden, Tom. (27 March 2019). "Poundstretcher planning scores of jobs at Leicestershire base".
2. Morgan, Aoife. (11 April 2024). "Poundstretcher sold to Majestic Wine owner Fortress as ex-Morrisons exec named CEO – Retail Gazette".
3. (8 January 2024). "Profit and turnover falls at Poundstretcher – but firm remains optimistic for brighter future {{!}} TheBusinessDesk.com".
4. (24 February 2014). "Success Stories: Poundstretcher | Wholesale Scout".
5. [https://www.insidermedia.com/insider/yorkshire/43425-fearnley-secures-primeur-stake-3m-deal Fearnley secures Primeur stake on £3m deal]
6. "Internet Wayback Machine".
7. (30 June 2009). "Instore goes back to its roots with return of Poundstretcher brand". Yorkshire Post.
8. "Poundstretcher – About Us".
9. (1 December 2013). "Huddersfield-based Poundstretcher to open more stores". The Huddersfield Daily Examiner.
10. (6 May 2011). "Poundstretcher snaps up Alworths stores".
11. (6 May 2011). "Poundstretcher steps in to take over Alworths stores". The Courier.
12. (31 May 2012). "Poundstretcher's Dubai store opens". RetailWeek.
13. (16 April 2012). "Poundstretcher to open in Dubai". The Telegraph.
14. (16 April 2012). "Poundstretcher to open first shop in Dubai". Metro.
15. (11 February 2012). "Poundstretcher snaps up troubled Ugo chain from administration". The Grocer.
16. (9 February 2012). "Poundstretcher pounces to snap up 18 Ugo stores". RetailWeek.
17. (9 February 2012). "UGO sold to Poundstretcher in pre-pack deal". Retail Gazette.
18. Farrell, Steve. (25 March 2019). "Poundstretcher wins trademark battle for 'Bargain Buys' name".
19. [https://web.archive.org/web/20180822014930/https://www.channel4.com/programmes/saving-poundstretcher Saving Poundstretcher – All 4]
20. Farrell, Steve. (10 August 2018). "What Chris Edwards found at Poundstretcher".
21. Butler, Sarah. (16 June 2020). "Poundstretcher could close 250 UK stores". The Guardian.
22. Nazir, Sahar. (9 September 2021). "Poundstretcher posts £80m profits after redundancies – Retail Gazette".
23. Robinson, Megan. (26 September 2023). "Exclusive: PureGym and Poundstretcher eye former Wilko stores".
24. Morgan, Aoife. (6 December 2023). "Poundstretcher promotes ex-M&S Food finance boss to CEO – Retail Gazette".
25. Morgan, Aoife. (11 April 2024). "Poundstretcher sold to Majestic Wine owner Fortress as ex-Morrisons exec named CEO – Retail Gazette".