Wilko, a private company that sells everyday household and garden items, has said that it wants to free up £48 million as part of a 15-year strategic partnership with logistics expert DHL.
The sale and leaseback of its Nottinghamshire distribution centre made it possible for the business to refinance. This is just the first of a number of positive partnership benefits that will help the business improve its offer and the customer experience in all of its 402 stores and on wilko.com.
Even though day-to-day operations will stay the same, working with DHL, which already has several large operations in the area, means that both Wilko and DHL will benefit from economies of scale in property and storage.
The CEO of Wilko, Jerome Saint-Marc, says, “It’s standard business practise to always look at how we handle our finances. This property deal with DHL gives us and our team members long-term stability and is the right thing to do given how the market is right now and what our top priorities are.
“We’re making smart choices to trade a business and allow us to continue to invest in our long-term transformational strategy. Wilko is still run by a family and is still focused on helping hard-working families be the best they can be and giving customers great deals.
