Chichester Poundland to close after being unable to secure long term agreement

The Chichester branch, located in East Street, has entered an ‘everything must go’ clearance sale as it prepares for its closure on Sunday, February 8.

It has been reported that the closure comes due to Poundland being unable to secure a long-term agreement with the landlord, rather than it being part of the restructuring plans.

This is the second time the discount shop will leave Chichester after its initial exit five years ago where it was replaced by The Entertainer toy shop.

But it soon returned to the city, opening in the former HMV site where it has been a popular fixture ever since.

The blow comes following last year’s announcement that Poundland would be conducting a full restructure in a bid to continue operating.

The plan earmarked an initial 68 stores for closure, but its store network is set to be reduced to 650-700 stores, compared to the 800 it had at the start of the process.

Over the summer, the Whiteley site closed on July 21 despite not being named on the restructuring plan, with North End and Havant sites both closing in September.

Darren MacDonald, Poundland’s UK country manager, said earlier this month: “We know how disappointing it is when we leave a store, but before we close our doors for a final time, we’re determined to say goodbye by offering even more amazing value to customers.

“The special reductions, on top of the value we provide in every store, will help us leave locations we’re leaving with pride.

“And when we close our doors, we look forward to welcoming customers to one of the hundreds of Poundland stores we’ll continue to operate right across the UK.”

Poundland branches currently remain in Portsmouth city centre, Cosham, Leigh Park, Waterlooville and Fareham.