'Inevitable' fall of Wilko explained - 'atrocious' online to 'ghost ship' stores

"They were occupying an ex-Woolworth's size store with 2,500 square feet, if not bigger, and paying excessive amounts of rent, excessive amounts of rates, with very little support from the government," Daniel said. "The average basket value was low and they were never going to make a huge amount of money as margin, when you consider all of their overheads including salaries.

"But they didn't appeal to a mass audience and they didn't make themselves known to a younger audience, who ultimately probably would have enjoyed shopping there on the basis that it would have fitted in with their budget, but it just did not appeal to them in that way. It puts shoppers off to walk into a giant store that is half empty. They could have sectioned off 500 square foot of the store and put everything in there to create a more appealing shopping environment rather than feeling like you were in a ghost ship."

To read the full article by Dan Todaro, Managing Director please visit Mirror