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Poundland Limited is a British
variety store A variety store (also five and dime (historic), pound shop, or dollar store) is a retail store that sells general merchandise, such as apparel, auto parts, dry goods, toys, hardware, furniture, and a selection of groceries. It usually sel ...
chain founded by Dave Dodd and Steven Smith in 1990, originally selling all of its items at the single price of £1. The retailer grew from a single location in
Burton upon Trent Burton upon Trent, also known as Burton-on-Trent or simply Burton, is a market town in the borough of East Staffordshire in the county of Staffordshire, England, close to the border with Derbyshire. At the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 censu ...
, opening its hundredth location in 2003. In 2011, it expanded internationally by launching its first locations in Ireland under the name Dealz, and later into
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
and the
Isle of Man The Isle of Man ( , also ), or Mann ( ), is a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland. As head of state, Charles III holds the title Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Govern ...
. In 2015, it acquired rival 99p Stores. In 2016,
Steinhoff International Steinhoff International was a multinational corporation, multinational holding company that was dual listed in Germany and South Africa. It was officially delisted in October 2023. Its holdings were in the retail sector, primarily in furnitur ...
acquired Poundland for £610 million, later spinning it off into Pepco Group. In 2017, Poundland began offering a small selection of items in its stores exceeding £1. In 2021, it was reported that one in ten products in its stores had exceeded £1. In January 2025, in light of a sales slump, it was reported that it would increase its £1 and under product range. Following the collapse of Poundworld in 2018, Poundland was briefly the
category killer A category killer is a retailer, often a big-box store, that specialty store, specializes in and carries a large product assortment of a given category. Through their wide merchandise selections, low pricing, deep supply, large buying power, and m ...
of the single-price model until OneBelow (later OneBeyond) launched in 2019. In March 2025, it was announced that Pepco Group had appointed
Teneo Teneo is a public relations and advisory company. The company was founded in June 2011 by Declan Kelly, Paul Keary, and Doug Band, and as of 2025 has more than 1,600 employees located in 40 offices. In 2019, Teneo sold a majority stake to  ...
to locate a buyer for Poundland, following underperformance; Poundland was acquired by Gordon Brothers for a nominal one pound sterling on 12 June 2025. Poundland remains headquartered in
Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located ...
in the West Midlands.


History


1990s: Formation and early history

Poundland was co-founded by Dave Dodd and father and son team Keith and Steven Smith in April 1990 with a starting capital of just £50,000 and an office in Sedgley. The firm was funded by a loan from Keith Smith, who had set up the wholesaler and discount store Hooty's in 1963. The first pilot shop opened in December 1990 in the Octagon Centre,
Burton upon Trent Burton upon Trent, also known as Burton-on-Trent or simply Burton, is a market town in the borough of East Staffordshire in the county of Staffordshire, England, close to the border with Derbyshire. At the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 censu ...
and managed a turnover of £13,000 from 624 products on its first day of trading. Previous attempts at opening pilot shops had failed after being turned down by landlords who had reservations about allowing such a shop to operate and doubted the single-price concept would be successful in the UK. By the end of the first year, Poundland was operating from several shops and had turned over £1 million, with a profit of £6,000. Growth continued throughout the early 1990s, with six shops by December 1991 and a further seven a year later. In 1995, Steven Smith failed to plan for more warehouse space and retail growth pushed their storage capacity past its limits. In response to unacceptably high stock theft, a new warehouse was built, although it reduced profits from £850,000 in 1994 to £400,000 in 1995. Operational difficulties were resolved throughout 1996, when a new office in
Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
opened to support product sourcing and operations in the UK.


Early to mid-2000s: Expansion and management buyout

Although enduring a troubled first few years, by the 2000s Poundland had become a multi-million-pound business, opening their 150th shop in
Northampton Northampton ( ) is a town and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is the county town of Northamptonshire and the administrative centre of the Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority of West Northamptonshire. The town is sit ...
in mid-2006 with steady increases in gross turnover throughout the decade. Following a
management buy-out A management buyout (MBO) is a form of acquisition in which a company's existing managers acquire a large part, or all, of the company, whether from a parent company or High-net-worth individual, individual. Management- and/or leveraged buyouts bec ...
in 2002 by
Advent International Advent International Corporation is an American global private equity firm. It is focused on buyouts of companies in Western and Central Europe, North America, Latin America and Asia. The firm focuses on international buyouts, growth and strat ...
for £50 million, the company continued to grow with annual profit growth of 46% a year from £4.1 million in 2006 to £12.7 million in 2009.
Chairman The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...
Colin Smith, speaking in April 2005 as Poundland revealed it had invested £20–25 million in building a distribution centre, suggested there was great scope for further growth, saying "We can clearly conceive this chain having 400-plus stores in future"; this target was reached in 2012 with the opening of their Haringey store.


Late-2000s: Economic recession

Poundland reported strong sales during the
2008 financial crisis The 2008 financial crisis, also known as the global financial crisis (GFC), was a major worldwide financial crisis centered in the United States. The causes of the 2008 crisis included excessive speculation on housing values by both homeowners ...
, with 2008–2009 revenue just short of £400 million, up from £330 million the previous year. Despite this, Poundland closed stores not financially viable, even if well-positioned, such as in
West Ealing West Ealing is a district in the London Borough of Ealing, in West London. The district is about west of Ealing, Ealing Broadway. Although there is a long history of settlement in the area, West Ealing in its present form is less than one hundre ...
where it was believed that high rental costs were one of the reasons why the company pulled out of the area. Former CEO Jim McCarthy suggested there is a misconception that Poundland is a better business in a recession, saying that they are better during normal economic conditions, but robust enough to manage well under any economic conditions. When the rate of VAT was reduced in November 2008 from 17.5% to 15%, Poundland's prices remained fixed at £1, having kept the single price of £1 for 18 years while absorbing duty and increased supplier costs, saying that savings would be passed on in other ways. Reports emerged in September 2008 that Poundland's owners, Advent International, were to put the retail chain up for sale, with figures showing that value retailers were seeing business boom during the economic recession, noting that value-conscious customers were switching from traditional larger supermarket retailers for everyday necessities. The retailer announced in 2010 a surge in sales by nearly 35% over the 2009–2010 festive period.


2010s

In early 2010, Poundland's owners Advent International were planning on cashing in on the resurgence in discount retailers by preparing to put the chain up for sale. The report came as figures showed that value retailers were seeing a business boom in the
2008 financial crisis The 2008 financial crisis, also known as the global financial crisis (GFC), was a major worldwide financial crisis centered in the United States. The causes of the 2008 crisis included excessive speculation on housing values by both homeowners ...
, with Barclays Private Equity expressing an interest in a potential take-over of Poundland for about £200 million. On 4 May 2010, it was announced that Poundland had been sold to US private equity firm Warburg Pincus for £200 million and was the subject of an
initial public offering An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investm ...
in March 2014. The company acquired 99p Stores in 2015, which was followed by a drop in its share price from 350p to 150p; in August 2016, the now-struggling Poundland was sold to the South African company
Steinhoff International Steinhoff International was a multinational corporation, multinational holding company that was dual listed in Germany and South Africa. It was officially delisted in October 2023. Its holdings were in the retail sector, primarily in furnitur ...
for £610 million. Poundland's shareholders approved the takeover in September 2016. The business converted the 99p Stores under the Poundland brand, and introducing 'Poundland & More', selling at a range of different prices, in the acquired stores. In November 2017, Poundland signed a deal with British
online shopping Online shopping is a form of electronic commerce which allows consumers to directly buy goods or services from a seller over the Internet using a web browser or a mobile app. Consumers find a product of interest by visiting the website of th ...
retailer musicMagpie to receive supplies of used CDs, DVDs and Blu-Rays, which are then sold for £1 as part of Poundland's Replay range.


2020s

In October 2020, Poundland announced they had purchased Frozen Value Ltd, a frozen food retailer known for the Fulton's Foods chain of convenience stores. In 2021, Poundland introduced a new 'corner shop' convenience store format called Poundland Local, with a number of the acquired Fultons Foods shops being converted into the new format. Poundland Local was first launched in the East Midlands and Yorkshire, with the stores selling a core range of everyday groceries, snacks and household products. The first Poundland Local opened in Kendray (near Barnsley) on 21 May 2021, with a second store opening the next day in Hornsea. Both stores were former Fultons Foods stores. In addition to Poundland Local, the firm also trialled a new store concept for railway stations and other transport hubs called Poundland Go! In February 2022, Poundland opened their biggest retail store at Riverside Retail Park,
Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...
, in a former multi-outlet clothing store previously housing Dorothy Perkins, Topman, Topshop, Burton and Miss Selfridge, which closed following the collapse of parent
Arcadia Group Arcadia Group Ltd (formerly Arcadia Group plc and, until 1998, Burton Group plc) was a British multinational retailing company headquartered in London, England. It was best known for being the previous parent company of British Home Stores (B ...
in 2020. The new Poundland outlet sells a wider range of foodstuffs including beer, wine and spirits, fresh fruit and vegetables in addition to chilled and frozen, which is planned to be rolled out to further stores during 2022. Soon after, Poundland announced that a bigger new store opening was imminent, located at
Stockton on Tees Stockton-on-Tees is a market town in County Durham, England, with a population of 84,815 at the 2021 UK census. It gives its name to and is the largest settlement in the wider Borough of Stockton-on-Tees. It is part of Teesside and the Tees V ...
. In September 2023, Poundland acquired 71 stores from the collapsed Wilko chain in a last-minute deal and said it would prioritise the recruitment of former Wilko staff. In March 2025, Pepco Group announced they were selling the chain, and was understood that Gordon Brothers, Hilco Capital, Modella Capital, Alteri Investors and Endless were interested in the retailer, with the retailer being sold to the chosen company for a nominal one pound sterling.


Business operations


Sales strategy

For much of its history, Poundland promoted their sales strategy through the slogan: "Yes, Everything's £1!", yet started selling items for more than £1 from the mid-2010s onwards; the Advertising Standards Authority received complaints that the slogan was thus misleading and required it cease being used. There had been plans to expand the price offering in 2009 (such as a £2 section, 50p section etc.), but they were decided against at the time after understanding the overwhelming message from customers was not to change the easily understandable single price strategy. For the majority of stock sold at £1, the company does not need to transmit pricing information to stores and associate price tags with each item. With some manufacturers being apprehensive about selling their brands in a discount environment, the store offers the alternative of selling the products under their own brand. Inflation can present challenges to single-price retailers as the primary marketing strategy requires products never to increase in price. However, inflation can also be to an advantage, as some products which may previously have retailed below £1 (therefore cheaper elsewhere) may then become better value for £1. Problems arising from inflation are dismissed by Poundland, such as freight costs which become lower when the pound is weaker, in turn counteracting the impact. Various sales tactics are adopted to counteract inflation and reduce costs, including decreasing the quantity of an item within a set (such as removing a pencil within a larger pack) and replacing known brands with their own-brand alternatives. Examples of branded products being replaced include confectionery products After Eights and
Toblerone Toblerone ( , ) is a Swiss chocolate brand owned by Mondelez International (originally Kraft Foods Inc, Kraft Foods). Until 2022, it was produced exclusively in Bern, Switzerland, when a smaller, limited part of the portfolio began production i ...
. Poundland's Toblerone replacement planned to launch in July 2017, by offering a closely resembling own-brand product named Twin Peaks, though following a legal battle from Toblerone's manufacturer, the product had to be redesigned to be distinctly different.


Products offered

Poundland offer approximately 3,500 products, of which 1,000 are branded, mostly food and drink. Stock typically is categorised as either ongoing core lines (products bought direct from the manufacturer), seasonal ranges or clearance stock, with 10,000 new products featured each year. Initially, unbranded products stocked by Poundland (accounting for roughly 70% of total stock) would carry the Poundland branding and logo, however the retailer determined it could increase sales by removing the Poundland branding and instead marketing their own sub-brand of products. Some of the products sold under the in-house brand are supplied by manufacturers who are worried about their brand being sold in discount stores and would rather allow their products to sell without their own branding attached. As well as their in-house brand lines, the retailer sells many products from familiar brands, such as Colgate, Walkers and
Cadbury Cadbury, formerly Cadbury's and Cadbury Schweppes, is a British multinational confectionery company owned by Mondelez International (spun off from Kraft Foods) since 2010. It is the second-largest confectionery brand in the world, after Mars. ...
. Poundland were reported to be Britain's largest seller of batteries in 2009, stocking brands such as
Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at Sony City in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. The Sony Group encompasses various businesses, including Sony Corporation (electronics), Sony Semiconductor Solutions (i ...
,
Panasonic is a Japanese multinational electronics manufacturer, headquartered in Kadoma, Osaka, Kadoma, Japan. It was founded in 1918 as in Fukushima-ku, Osaka, Fukushima by Kōnosuke Matsushita. The company was incorporated in 1935 and renamed and c ...
and
Kodak The Eastman Kodak Company, referred to simply as Kodak (), is an American public company that produces various products related to its historic basis in film photography. The company is headquartered in Rochester, New York, and is incorporated i ...
in competitively priced quantities, with Kodak AA batteries being a high seller 2009. Poundland also sell large quantities of their stock to other retailers off-the-shelf, where it is cheaper for these retailers to pay £1 each for a bulk purchase than it would be to pay a discounted bulk-purchase rate elsewhere. From 2016, Pep&Co clothing items were sold in Poundland branches, although at prices higher than the £1 single-price. Whilst some Pep&Co outlets would share store space with larger Poundland outlets, smaller stores feature a minimal clothing offering. In 2018, Poundland announced that it will stop selling kitchen knives in all stores across the UK following a surge in knife attacks. As of July 2018, the ban has taken effect in the London and West Midlands regions. From 2023, Poundland and Pep&Co product ranges were gradually phased out in favour of Pepco branded ranges. This transition was seen as a potential cause for a dip in like-for-like sales at the group in 2024.


Customers

Poundland estimated it served 7 million customers per week in 2016, with most in the C1, C2, D and E categories although claimed in 2008 that 10% of their customers were in the A/B social grade groups, an increase of 22% compared to 2007. Poundland's typical appeal to low-income households is a reputation they are seeking to distance themselves from, as they expand into mainstream shopping centres and districts, with a focus on attracting higher earning consumers.


Corporate affairs


Competition

Since the acquisition of 99p Stores in 2015, Poundland's closest competitor was the now defunct Poundworld. Other competitors are discount retailers B&M, Home Bargains and supermarkets. Poundland may sometimes find they are competing with other retailers' own produce. It was reported in May 2010 that Poundland were selling rebranded lotions for £1, exactly the same product that
Boots A boot is a type of footwear. Most boots mainly cover the foot and the ankle, while some also cover some part of the lower calf. Some boots extend up the leg, sometimes as far as the knee or even the hip. Most boots have a heel that is clearl ...
were selling under their own brand for significantly more. Boots responded to the findings by suggesting that the products available in Poundland stores were likely excess stock they had sold off below cost price which had been destined for overseas markets, with some directed into UK distribution without their permission. Larger chains have felt the impact of discount retailers, with some customers switching from larger supermarket retailers for everyday necessities. To entice customers into their stores from larger supermarket chains, Poundland advertise familiar brands at competitive prices, in the hope that customers may then be inclined to impulse buy other products, such as own-brand goods that they otherwise would not have purchased.
Asda Asda Stores Limited (), trading as Asda and often styled as ASDA, is a British supermarket and petrol station chain. Its headquarters is in Leeds, England. The company was incorporated as Associated Dairies and Farm Stores in 1949. It expanded ...
reduced some branded product prices such as Colgate toothpaste to £1 in January 2009, in competition with Poundland who offered the same products at the £1 price; in response, Poundland introduced multi-buy offers to provide a larger quantity of the products for the same price. However, research conducted by '' The Grocer'' magazine in August 2009 found that of the 1300-odd supposedly discounted Asda products, a third were the same price as in March 2008 and 173 products had been selling for less than £1 during spring 2009.


Store expansion

From 2000 until 2003, company growth was steady, with a milestone 100th store opening in Shirley, West Midlands in 2003, yet in the following three years, store numbers had increased by 50% to 150 by 2006. Growth slowed until early 2008 when Poundland took advantage of the economic downturn to further expand at an average rate of 3.7 stores a month, from February 2008 to September 2009, opening their 200th store during this time. As of 2015, Poundland's UK and Ireland stores averaged , and typically ranged from . The retailer expanded into
Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
and opened six stores before Christmas 2009, selling locally sourced goods such as milk, as well as their usual branded products. Following the acquisition of 99p Stores, Poundland announced 80 stores were to close in November 2016, just two months after their takeover by Steinhoff International.


Financial performance

Poundland have seen increases in turnover year on year, helped by an increase of store openings and the
2008 financial crisis The 2008 financial crisis, also known as the global financial crisis (GFC), was a major worldwide financial crisis centered in the United States. The causes of the 2008 crisis included excessive speculation on housing values by both homeowners ...
. While some high street shops reported a downturn in profits during the
2008 financial crisis The 2008 financial crisis, also known as the global financial crisis (GFC), was a major worldwide financial crisis centered in the United States. The causes of the 2008 crisis included excessive speculation on housing values by both homeowners ...
, Poundland achieved growth attributed to the
2007–2008 world food price crisis World food prices increased dramatically in 2007 and the first and second quarter of 2008, creating a International crisis, global crisis and causing political and economic instability and social unrest in both Poor countries, poor and develop ...
, including increased sales of
toothpaste Toothpaste is a paste or gel dentifrice that is used with a toothbrush to clean and maintain the aesthetics of Human tooth, teeth. Toothpaste is used to promote oral hygiene: it is an abrasive that aids in removing dental plaque and food from th ...
and tinned food.


International operations

Although price-point retailing and psychological pricing were first adopted in the United States during the 1870s by Frank Winfield Woolworth, the chain claims to have introduced this concept to Europe, and in 2009 claimed to be the largest single-price discount retailer in Europe. On 2 August 2011, Poundland announced plans to expand into mainland Europe under the name Dealz. The first six stores opened in Ireland in late 2011, creating 120 jobs, and were followed by a store in the
Isle of Man The Isle of Man ( , also ), or Mann ( ), is a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland. As head of state, Charles III holds the title Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Govern ...
in December 2011. The name '
Euro The euro (currency symbol, symbol: euro sign, €; ISO 4217, currency code: EUR) is the official currency of 20 of the Member state of the European Union, member states of the European Union. This group of states is officially known as the ...
land' was not used in Ireland, due to poor feedback from potential customers.


Museum

A Poundland museum has been created at Ludstone Hall, Claverley. This depicts the life of Steve Smith and his rise as market stall holder at Bilston Market to a multi-millionaire.


Criticism and litigation


Value for money

Although the £1 price once prevailed throughout the stores, some branded products have been known to be offered cheaper at
supermarket A supermarket is a self-service Retail#Types of outlets, shop offering a wide variety of food, Drink, beverages and Household goods, household products, organized into sections. Strictly speaking, a supermarket is larger and has a wider selecti ...
chains, such as a case reported by the ''
Daily Mirror The ''Daily Mirror'' is a British national daily Tabloid journalism, tabloid newspaper. Founded in 1903, it is part of Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN), which is owned by parent company Reach plc. From 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the tit ...
'' newspaper in November 2009, which compared Poundland prices for branded products with the same products offered at supermarket stores and found in some cases the supermarkets offered better value. In 2019 25% of prices were over £1. By 2022 over half their prices were over £1.


Environmental concerns

In 2008, Poundland faced controversy by green campaigners over transporting Polo peppermints into the UK from
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...
, rather than sourcing the product locally and in spite of being close to the Nestle
Rowntree's Nestlé UK Ltd. ( ), trading as Rowntree's ( ), is a British confectionery brand and a former business based in York, England. Rowntree developed the Kit Kat (introduced in 1935), Aero (introduced in 1935), Fruit Pastilles (introduced in 1881 ...
factory in
York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...
, which has made the mint since 1948. Poundland insisted it was cheaper for them to source the product from overseas, including transport costs; the mints were transported by ship, not by air, lessening the environmental impact of shipping substantially.


Health and safety

Some products occasionally fail to meet health and safety standards and may pose a health threat to the consumer. Previous examples have included withdrawal of dangerous car jump leads in February 2006 found to have only a 3-
ampere The ampere ( , ; symbol: A), often shortened to amp,SI supports only the use of symbols and deprecates the use of abbreviations for units. is the unit of electric current in the International System of Units (SI). One ampere is equal to 1 c ...
wire which, if used, could quickly overheat, melt and possibly catch fire, as well as recalling
Halloween Halloween, or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve), is a celebration geography of Halloween, observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christianity, Western Christian f ...
witch hats in October 2008, after checks revealed a small number of chemicals classified unsafe. In 2010, Poundland were fined £4,000 after a customer suffered injury due to a defective fishing catapult and in the same year was fined £3,500 for selling lighters that produced a flame causing the device to melt during normal use. In 2005, Poundland was fined £3,000 after being found to be blocking fire exits, with a further breach in 2011 that incurred a fine of £20,000 and evacuation of a store due to poor fire safety.


Pest infestation

Poundland were fined £24,000 in June 2012 following an investigation of a store in
Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London; it is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater Lond ...
, Greater London. Council inspectors found poor hygiene, mouse infestation and food contaminated by mice chewing open the packaging and leaving droppings and urine inside, which were then re-sealed and sold to the public. Poundland admitted failing to withdraw food unfit for consumption, failing to control mice and failing to ensure the store was well maintained and clean. Additionally they admitted to failure to implement and maintain its own food safety management system. In June 2015, Poundland were fined £10,000 following an investigation by
Islington Council Islington London Borough Council, also known as Islington Council, is the local authority for the London Borough of Islington in Greater London, England. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in London. The council has been under Labour majo ...
of a store in north London. Evidence of a widespread mouse infestation and that the company had failed to take appropriate action to remedy the situation was presented in court. In 2017, Poundland were fined £100,000 by Wandsworth Council after inspectors discovered a rodent infestation at the store at Southside Shopping Centre in Wandsworth Town that was so bad some of the rats were dead. Mouse droppings and evidence of urine were found on food shelves alongside gnawed and soiled packets of biscuits, nuts, sweets and popcorn. Droppings were found throughout the store and in storage areas, including on baby clothes. The store had to be temporarily closed using emergency powers in January 2016, after rodents were also spotted running down the aisles.


Remembrance poppies

In response to a news story about a member of staff being sent home for wearing a
Remembrance poppy A remembrance poppy is an artificial flower worn in some countries to commemorate their military personnel who died in war. Remembrance poppies are produced by veterans' associations, which exchange the poppies for charitable donations used to g ...
in October 2011, Poundland posted a comment on their Facebook and Twitter social media stating "Poundland is not against colleagues wearing a poppy; however, colleagues are not allowed to wear one on the shop-floor simply as it does not abide by the uniform rules." Poundland backed down from the ban on 31 October, and released the statement that employees will be allowed to "use their own discretion in wearing poppies" after hundreds of customers threatened to boycott the store.


Advertising and commercial campaigns

In December 2017, Poundland ran a social media campaign with a series of #ElfBehavingBad posts based on humour and double entendres. The Advertising Standards Authority received 85 complaints. The complaints were upheld and Poundland told not to show the posts in their current form again, as well as ensuring their adverts were presented with a sense of responsibility and did not cause offence.


Cease and desist from Mothercare

Poundland planned to open a store in
Biggleswade Biggleswade ( ) is a market town and civil parish in Central Bedfordshire in Bedfordshire, England. It lies on the River Ivel, 11 miles (18 km) south-east of Bedford. Its population was 16,551 in the 2011 United Kingdom census, This figur ...
, dubbed "Motherland", the logo featured a similar logo to the retailer Mothercare. On 9 February 2024, Mothercare sent a
cease and desist A cease and desist letter is a document sent by one party, often a business, to warn another party that they believe the other party is committing an unlawful act, such as copyright infringement, and that they will take legal action if the oth ...
to the discount retailer, the store was renamed to "Parentland" and now uses the same font as the Poundland logo.


See also

* Pep&Co * Pound Shop Wars *
Variety store A variety store (also five and dime (historic), pound shop, or dollar store) is a retail store that sells general merchandise, such as apparel, auto parts, dry goods, toys, hardware, furniture, and a selection of groceries. It usually sel ...
* Warburg Pincus


References


External links


Poundland's official website

Poundland – Companies House #08861243
* {{Authority control Arts and crafts retailers Retail companies of the United Kingdom Variety stores Discount shops of the United Kingdom Companies based in the West Midlands (county) British companies established in 1990 Retail companies established in 1990 1990 establishments in the United Kingdom Supermarkets of the United Kingdom British brands Warburg Pincus companies