UK

HMV owner in last-ditch bid to rescue Wilko

Daniel Woolfson
Thu, 24 August 2023 

HMV owner Doug Putman has initiated talks with administrators at PwC about acquiring around 200 Wilko shops - Fabio De Paola/PA Wire

The Canadian businessman who brought HMV back from the brink of oblivion has emerged as a potential last-minute buyer for collapsed chain Wilko.

Doug Putman, who is credited with reversing the fortunes of HMV after buying it out of administration in 2019, has initiated talks with Wilko’s administrators at PwC about acquiring around half of Wilko’s 400 shops – although it is understood no formal bid has been tabled.

Around 10 other parties are understood to be interested in acquiring stores, including a small number that have expressed an interest in potentially buying more than 50 stores.

News of Mr Putman’s interest, first reported by The Times, raises the prospect that thousands of jobs could be saved at the fallen high street chain, which collapsed into administration earlier this month after struggling to recover from the pandemic and failing to secure a buyer.

Mr Putman would, reportedly, continue to run a number of shops under the Wilko brand if he were to acquire them. It is expected a further announcement on the future of Wilko will be made over the coming week.

It comes one day after PwC warned it was likely many of Wilko’s stores would close and jobs would be lost.

“While discussions continue with those interested in buying parts of the business, it’s clear that the nature of this interest is not focused on the whole Group,” it said on Wednesday.

A PwC spokesman added on Thursday evening: “As administrators we’re intent on achieving the best outcome for everyone involved while preserving as many jobs as possible and adhering to our statutory duty to act in the best interests of the creditors as a whole.

“It would be inappropriate to comment on individual bidders or interested parties at this stage in the process.”

Brothers Simon and Bobby Arora are reportedly interested in buying some of Wilko's stores to add to B&M’s portfolio

Rival discount retailers including B&M, which is run by the Arora brothers, are also reportedly interested in acquiring some of Wilko’s stores.

Wilko has struggled with the legacy of supply issues during the pandemic and overexposure to Britain’s ailing high streets.

But sales and share price of B&M – which focuses more on retail parks and locations with higher footfall – have surged in recent months.

Mr Putman, who owns Canadian retailer Sunrise Records, turned around HMV by refocusing it around vinyl and merchandise instead of the CDs and DVDs it had become known for over the last decades.

Sales at HMV’s UK parent company Sunshine Records and Entertainment, which also owns smaller chain Fopp, jumped from £90m to £150m in the 12 months to May 2022, and HMV is poised to return to the former site of its Oxford Street flagship later this year, four years after shutting the doors of the shop.

Mr Putman declined to comment.