Irish retailing family steps in to rescue Poundworld

THE remnants of Poundworld looks set to be purchased by Dublin retailing family the Hendersons.

They announced the deal yesterday, hours before the last of the Poundworld stores closed.

The Hendersons have no connection to the Northern Ireland group of the same name.

Poundworld, which was bought by US TPG Capital in 2015 for £150m, went into administration in June, closing over 250 stores with the loss of 4,000 jobs.

A source close to the administrators said while there had been an agreement in principle, the deal had not yet been confirmed. A formal announcement is expected early next week. It’s understood that the agreement will involve 30 to 40 empty units.

It’s unclear if any of the 12 Northern Ireland stores will be included and whether any former staff members will be rehired. Headed by Ray Henderson, the family were behind a separate Irish version of Poundworld, established in 1984.

It was later rebranded in line with the euro and sold in 2007. Mr Henderson’s son David said that their offer to purchase “the best and remaining stores” for an undisclosed sum had been accepted by the administrators.

The family have formed a new UK entity, RVP Holdings Limited, to run the business: “We now look forward to bringing the company back to profit and provide current and new customers with an unrivalled product offering at low prices.”