Martin Phillp wrote: ↑Wed 13 Sep, 2023 17.33
The brand and website is set to be acquired by The Range.
'Why?' is the question I'm stuck with.
Much stronger brand than their own and the website is much better aswell. £5m for a whole website, regardless to brand isn't that much in the grand scheme of things especially when it has recognition. I know Wilko has been selling on Amazon for quite awhile now.
Wonder if long term they might trial a smaller format store branded as Wilko, most Ranges are destination stores as they're too big to really use them for just getting little bits and bobs.
Similar to Woolco or Big W vs Woolworths or Iceland vs Food Warehouse
WillPS wrote: ↑Fri 15 Sep, 2023 01.25
The Range is overpriced and full of absolute tut.
Wilko wasn't immune to 'live laugh love'-level shite but until the end of their life were always decent on price.
Must say I always thought I was the only the person who thought that about The Range.
I've never really seen any point to go to the place, it's just a vast array of everything but there's so many better shops for pretty much everything in there plus an Iceland which is just a bizarre thing to have and nothing is cheap.
Just reminds me of a bad department store but in a warehouse.
Guess their tat must have massive margins as they must make money from somewhere and they're never exactly packed when passing by.
Zimba wrote: ↑Thu 14 Sep, 2023 08.54
Much stronger brand than their own and the website is much better aswell. £5m for a whole website, regardless to brand isn't that much in the grand scheme of things especially when it has recognition. I know Wilko has been selling on Amazon for quite awhile now.
Wonder if long term they might trial a smaller format store branded as Wilko, most Ranges are destination stores as they're too big to really use them for just getting little bits and bobs.
Similar to Woolco or Big W vs Woolworths or Iceland vs Food Warehouse
It's perhaps worth noting that the nearest Range store to where I live has an Iceland concession within it. I wouldn't be too surprised if a Wilko 'concession' section eventually appeared in some of their stores, even if it's mostly a rebranding of certain existing Range product categories.
"If ass holes could fly then this place would be an airport."
WillPS wrote: ↑Fri 15 Sep, 2023 01.25
The Range is overpriced and full of absolute tut.
Wilko wasn't immune to 'live laugh love'-level shite but until the end of their life were always decent on price.
Must say I always thought I was the only the person who thought that about The Range.
I've never really seen any point to go to the place, it's just a vast array of everything but there's so many better shops for pretty much everything in there plus an Iceland which is just a bizarre thing to have and nothing is cheap.
Just reminds me of a bad department store but in a warehouse.
Guess their tat must have massive margins as they must make money from somewhere and they're never exactly packed when passing by.
I have memories of when they first opened up my end - they had a small TV section up on the mezzanine, with some decently priced TVs that I think came from some TV retailer that had collapsed. A year or two later, they were selling the same TVs with the same (outdated) demonstration disc playing on them, which was a bit less appealing than the first time round.
They're pretty good for crafting items, being quite a bit cheaper than the likes of Hobbycraft on comparable items. They have some... interesting items of décor and furniture. And, for multiple Christmases in a row, they had one of those Christmas trees that rains polystyrene pellets into an upside-down umbrella, with the resultant overspill and mess from passing children playing with the "snow".
My fear is if I buy from the new Wilko website, it's just going to be Range tat overpriced and not using the existing suppliers that Wilko used which were cheaper but of a decent quality for the price.
Zimba wrote: ↑Thu 14 Sep, 2023 08.54
Much stronger brand than their own and the website is much better aswell. £5m for a whole website, regardless to brand isn't that much in the grand scheme of things especially when it has recognition. I know Wilko has been selling on Amazon for quite awhile now.
Wonder if long term they might trial a smaller format store branded as Wilko, most Ranges are destination stores as they're too big to really use them for just getting little bits and bobs.
Similar to Woolco or Big W vs Woolworths or Iceland vs Food Warehouse
It's perhaps worth noting that the nearest Range store to where I live has an Iceland concession within it. I wouldn't be too surprised if a Wilko 'concession' section eventually appeared in some of their stores, even if it's mostly a rebranding of certain existing Range product categories.
Must admit I was thinking that but then I'm not sure what Wilko would be, it's kind of the same store in the sense of a bit of everything but not really good at it.
Mind I wouldn't be surprised to see a reverse naming up here, The Range's locally I find are dead most the time.
WillPS wrote: ↑Fri 15 Sep, 2023 01.25
The Range is overpriced and full of absolute tut.
Wilko wasn't immune to 'live laugh love'-level shite but until the end of their life were always decent on price.
Must say I always thought I was the only the person who thought that about The Range.
I've never really seen any point to go to the place, it's just a vast array of everything but there's so many better shops for pretty much everything in there plus an Iceland which is just a bizarre thing to have and nothing is cheap.
Just reminds me of a bad department store but in a warehouse.
Guess their tat must have massive margins as they must make money from somewhere and they're never exactly packed when passing by.
I have memories of when they first opened up my end - they had a small TV section up on the mezzanine, with some decently priced TVs that I think came from some TV retailer that had collapsed. A year or two later, they were selling the same TVs with the same (outdated) demonstration disc playing on them, which was a bit less appealing than the first time round.
They're pretty good for crafting items, being quite a bit cheaper than the likes of Hobbycraft on comparable items. They have some... interesting items of décor and furniture. And, for multiple Christmases in a row, they had one of those Christmas trees that rains polystyrene pellets into an upside-down umbrella, with the resultant overspill and mess from passing children playing with the "snow".
I genuinely never knew they'd been around for so long thought it were only 15 or so year old, believe the first store up here was 2012 in an old No Frills (Focus DIY seconds store) and I don't know it always just seems a worse B&M who were already pretty much established up here. Poor quality, but not cheap. Must admit I'm not wise crafting so could see how, not much competition nowadays really, I know my parents love wool and the prices in store are just stupid across pretty much everywhere.
It's a strange one as I never understand how they make money as locally the stores are pretty much always dead but guessing down South it's different. Strangely B&M is awkwardly quiet up here in recent times aswell, especially in comparison to Poundland and Home Bargains which are both packed. I'm not surprised at Poundland opening their flagship Teesside Park and they've took quite a few Wilko's aswell.
The following stores will shut on Monday September 25:
Altrincham, Greater Manchester
Ashton, Greater Manchester
Barry, Wales
Bridgwater, Somerset
Cleveleys, Lancashire
Cockermouth, Cumbria
Crossgates, Leeds
Darlington, County Durham
Dartford, Kent
Dereham, Norfolk
Giltbrook, Nottingham
Great Malvern, Worcestershire
Haverfordwest, Wales
Headingley, West Yorkshire
High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire
Ilkeston, Derbyshire
Killingworth, North Tyneside
Lichfield, Staffordshire
Louth, Lincolnshire
Market Drayton, Shropshire
Northfield, Birmingham
Oakham, Rutland
Pembroke Dock, Pembrokeshire
Peterborough, Cambridgeshire
Ramsgate, Kent
Skelmersdale, Lancashire
Staines, Surrey
Strood, Kent
Stroud, Gloucestershire
Thamesmead, Greater London
Thetford, Norfolk
Trowbridge, Wiltshire
Walthamstow, Greater London
Warrington, Lancashire
Waterlooville, Hampshire
Winton, Dorset
Yiewsley, Greater London
The following stores will shut on Wednesday September 27:
Acocks Green, Birmingham, West Midlands
Alnwick, Northumberland
Ammanford, Carmarthenshire, Wales
Armley, Leeds, West Yorkshire
Arnison-Durham, Durham, County Durham
Bedford, Bedfordshire
Blyth, Northumberland
Boston, Lincolnshire, East Midlands
Brentwood, Essex
Cambridge, Cambridgeshire
Chester Le Street, County Durham
Gillingham, Kent
Gloucester, Gloucestershire
Greenwich, London
Halesowen, Dudley, West Midlands
Harlow, Essex
Hartlepool, County Durham
Kidderminster, Worcestershire
Lewisham, London
Longton, Stoke-on-Trent
Meadowhall, Sheffield, South Yorkshire
Motherwell, North Lanarkshire
Newark, Nottinghamshire
Nuneaton, Warwickshire
Rainham, London
Runcorn, Cheshire
Six Acre Shopping Centre, Sale, Greater Manchester
Salford, Greater Manchester
South Shields, Tyne and Wear
Sutton-In-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire
Thornaby, North Yorkshire
Watford, Hertfordshire
Wellington, Somerset
Whitehaven, Cumbria
Wigston, Leicestershire
Worksop, Nottinghamshire
Yeovil, Somerset
The following stores will shut on Friday September 29:
