Poundland shoppers and staff across Renfrewshire face an anxious few weeks after the discount chain took the first formal step towards administration.

On Thursday 29 October the company filed a notice of intention to appoint administrators at the High Court. That gives it ten working days of protection from creditors while advisers try to put together a rescue, either for the whole business or, more likely, for parts of it. Advisory firm AlixPartners is expected to be appointed as administrator.

For now, nothing changes at the tills. Poundland says all of its stores remain open and trading as normal.

What it means locally

Poundland has several shops in and around Paisley, including at the Piazza Shopping Centre in the town centre, at Phoenix Retail Park on Linwood Road, on Johnstone High Street and on the upper level at Frasers Plus Braehead.

No list of closures has been published, and no decisions have been announced about any individual store. Across the UK the chain runs around 600 shops and employs about 12,000 people.

How it got here

US investment firm Gordon Brothers bought Poundland for a nominal £1 from its previous owner, Pepco, in June 2025, and has closed more than 100 shops over the past year as part of a turnaround plan. It launched a sale process in September.

Management had named Northern Irish firm Martin Property Group as its preferred bidder for the whole business, but that offer was rejected by the owners. Several other retailers, including the owners of The Range and Wilko, Poundstretcher and TG Jones, are understood to be interested in buying parts of the chain, with B&M, Lidl and Aldi also linked with some sites. Any deals are unlikely to cover every store.

Managing director Barry Williams said: "Despite enormous efforts it has not been possible to identify an acceptable offer for the business as a whole. The process has however attracted several established retail operators who have made formal offers. Collectively these cover a significant part of the business, and we believe offer the best available prospects for shareholders, creditors and to preserve jobs."

The board added: "Our stores remain open as normal, and we thank our staff, suppliers and customers for their continued support."

Union plea for staff

Shopworkers' union Usdaw has urged the owners to think again. National officer Bally Auluk said: "It has been an incredibly distressing week for Poundland staff who have had to watch from the sidelines as a multibillion-pound company jeopardises their livelihoods." The union wants the owners to prioritise a single buyer who would protect jobs across the business.

The Prime Minister has described it as a "deeply worrying time for Poundland staff" and said the government is ready to support them.

We'll update this story when there's news about the Renfrewshire stores.

Image: Poundland at Phoenix Retail Park, Linwood Road. Photo: Airear, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (cropped).