Does three into one make

Ashford now has a third Poundland store after the conversion of the former Family Bargains shop on the Warren Retail Park off Simone Weil Avenue to a Poundland outlet.

The name change is the result of Poundland inheriting the Family Bargains chain of shops following the company’s acquisition of the 99p Stores group in September 2015.

That purchase saw the 99p Store in Ashford High Street turn into a Poundland in mid-March this year, and now the Family Bargains store has followed suit.

And Ashford seems to have a reputation for the same company having more than one trading outlet in and around the town.

There are also currently four Tescos, four McDonald’s, three KFCs and two Subways. And hairdressing salons? At the last count there were around 30 men’s barbers and ladies hairdressing salons in the town centre alone.

But the question now being asked is: can Ashford sustain, or does it want, three Poundland stores, especially when two of them (in the town centre) are only about 300 metres apart from each other?

That was already the question six weeks ago when the 99p Store converted into a Poundland as a result of the company successfully acquiring its rival for an enterprise value of £55 million.

The purchase was approved by the Competition and Markets Authority, which said the combination of the two brands would not lead to less choice for consumers.

After the deal was rubberstamped it was understood in towns like Ashford, with both a 99p Store and a Poundland shop, they would combine.

But to the surprise of many, the Poundland stores in the County Square shopping centre and in the High Street have remained open, and have been joined by this third incarnation, in the former Family Bargains store on the Warren Retail Park

After the takeover, Poundland chief executive, Jim McCarthy, did confirm the majority of 99p Stores would be rebranded, resulting in a 1p per item price rise for shoppers.

When asked in March which outlet in Ashford town centre was likely to remain open and which could close, a spokesman for Poundland said it was still early days in the conversion process and that the company was looking at each town on a “case by case basis”.

This week a Poundland spokesman said that situation had not changed, despite the new store opening.

Poundland has opened nearly 600 stores in the UK, the Republic of Ireland and Spain since 1990.

It sells a selection of items, including food and drink, health and beauty, household and gardening products, stationery, books and toys – all predominantly for a £1.

By acquiring 99p Stores, Poundland has added a further 250 stores to its collection.

99p Stores Ltd was a family-run business founded in January 2001, by entrepreneur Nadir Lalani, who opened the first store in the chain in Holloway, north London.

Poundland is also trialling a new multi-price store format using some of the Family Bargains shops it picked up in its takeover. It is being operated in an unspecified number of the 27 Family Bargains shops, but not, it is understood, in any of the Ashford Poundlands.

The stores are on average around two-and-a-half times bigger than its normal shops.

They will sell the range of £1 products as well as other higherpriced items.

Can Ashford sustain three Poundland stores? What do you think? Write to Kentish Express, 34-36 North Street, Ashford TN24 8JR or email kentishexpress@ thekmgroup.co.uk

New Poundland opened at Warren Park after inheriting the Family Bargains site, inset, top right, during the company’s acquisition