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Woolworths (United Kingdom)

This article is about the former British company. For other retailers of similar name, see Woolworth.

Woolworths Group PLC
Woolworths
Woolco (1960s–1986)
Big W (1998–2004)
IndustryRetail and distribution
PredecessorF. W. Woolworth & Co. Ltd (1909–1999)
Founded6 November 1909; 115 years ago (1909-11-06) in Liverpool, United Kingdom[1]
FounderFrank Winfield Woolworth
Defunct5 January 2009; 16 years ago (5 January 2009) (physical stores)
13 June 2015; 9 years ago (13 June 2015) (Woolworths.co.uk)
OwnerWoolworth Deutschland (trademarks)
WebsiteOfficial website Edit this at Wikidata

Woolworths was a British high-street retail chain. At its height, it operated as Woolworths Group PLC, which included other companies such as the entertainment distributor Entertainment UK, and book and resource distributor Bertram Books.

The Woolworths store chain was originally a division of the American F. W. Woolworth Company until its sale in the early 1980s,[2][3] it had more than 800 stores in the UK prior to closure. Woolworths sold many goods and had its own Ladybird children's clothing range,[4] WorthIt! value range and Chad Valley toys.[5] They were also well known for selling pick 'n' mix sweets.[6] It was sometimes referred to as Woolies by the UK media, the general public, and occasionally in its own television adverts.[7][8] The British company also owned and operated divisions in the Republic of Ireland which closed in 1984, and Cyprus which was sold in 1985.

On 26 November 2008, trading of shares in Woolworths Group was suspended, and its Woolworths and Entertainment UK subsidiaries entered administration.[9] Deloitte closed all 807 Woolworths stores between 27 December 2008 and 6 January 2009, resulting in 27,000 job losses.[10] Woolworths Group plc entered administration on 27 January 2009,[11] and it was officially dissolved on 13 October 2015.[12] The collapse of Woolworths was a symbol of the credit crunch and financial turmoil in the United Kingdom at the end of 2008.[13][14]

In February 2009, Shop Direct Group (later known as The Very Group) purchased the Woolworths brand and website, which continued as an online-only business, until its closure in June 2015 when it was merged into Very.co.uk.

In July 2021, Woolworth Deutschland acquired the Woolworths brand and website from The Very Group for an undisclosed sum.[15][16] In January 2024, Woolworth Deutschland's chief executive told BBC News that the UK was on his "bucket list" of desintations for international expansion.[17]

  1. ^ Coslett, Paul (2 December 2008). "The birth of a shopping tradition". BBC. Retrieved 15 August 2013.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference teleg_history was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference bbc_cert was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ "10 years after Woolworths' collapse, what can retailers learn? - Retail Gazette". www.retailgazette.co.uk. 4 December 2018. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  5. ^ "Argos buys Chad Valley toys from Woolworths". The Independent. 22 October 2011. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  6. ^ O'Neill, Ryan (9 October 2020). "Newport's lost high street shops and what's there now". WalesOnline. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  7. ^ Lavan, Rosie (26 November 2008). "A history of Woolies: 99 years of pic 'n' mix". The Times. Archived from the original on 12 June 2011. Retrieved 11 December 2008.
  8. ^ "Opinion: Don't cry for Woolworths.. its time was up". Daily Mirror. 27 November 2008. Retrieved 11 December 2008.
  9. ^ "Woolworths enters administration". BBC News. 26 November 2008. Retrieved 26 November 2008.
  10. ^ "Woolworths stores to close". BBC News. 17 December 2008. Retrieved 17 December 2008.
  11. ^ "Woolworths Group plc - Home page". 27 February 2009. Archived from the original on 27 February 2009. Retrieved 21 March 2014.
  12. ^ "Woolworths Group plc". DueDil. Retrieved 12 November 2015.
  13. ^ Braithwaite, Tom; Rigby, Elizabeth; Eaglesham, Jean (27 November 2008). "Woolworths falls into administration". Financial Times. London.
  14. ^ "Woolworths and MFI crash threatens 31,000 jobs". The Guardian. 27 November 2008.
  15. ^ "Unknown".[permanent dead link‍]
  16. ^ "Woolworths could return to British High Streets". BBC News. 23 January 2024. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  17. ^ "Woolworths could return to British High Streets". BBC News. 23 January 2024. Retrieved 2 December 2024.
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