Former Wilko CEO named as new Poundland CFO

Ex-Wilko CEO Mark Jackson has been appointed the new chief financial officer of Poundland.

The executive has been hailed for his efforts to save Wilko before its collapse, according to Retail Week.

He has previously served as chief financial officer of clothing brand Pep&Co, which is sold across Poundland and Pep&Co stores.

Jackson has also formerly held roles at collapsed firm Steinhoff and was the CEO of Bensons for Beds, which the company previously owned.

Commenting on the executive’s hire, Poundland managing director Barry Williams said: “Not only is Mark highly experienced in the kind of processes we’ll be undertaking, he’s also a long-term friend of our business.

“His experience as a turnaround specialist will be invaluable to us as we move to rebuild the business.”

He continued: “We’ve a lot of work to do to get Poundland to a point where we can begin our recovery phase from a tough period—but I know with a clear action plan, the right backing and your support, we will put ourselves in the right position to do exactly that.”

The appointment comes after Poundland recently appointed advisors at Teneo to handle a sale of the chain.

Poundland owner Pepco said the retailer had continued its negative like-for-like sales performance for the first two months of the year, with an “underperformance of all categories”.

It is believed that the brand’s 825 store portfolio could be at risk as the parent company seeks to offload the chain.

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