WILKO has confirmed the permanent closure of its store in Erith.  

The British retail chain will close its doors at Erith Riverside Shopping Centre in September 2022.  

A spokesperson for Wilko says it was unable to reach an agreement with its landlord to make this store commercially viable.

The chain also confirmed the closure of 15 other stores across the UK earlier this year. 

The nearest alternative Wilko stores for Erith shoppers are at 74 Broadway in Bexleyheath and Priory Centre in Dartford.  

Wilko has more than 400 stores in the UK, according to its website.

Jerome Saint-Marc, CEO of Wilko said: “Our history is steeped in serving our customers and communities going back to 1930 but there’s no denying the way people shop with us and where they want to shop with us is changing.  

“As a business we’re evolving and this includes working with landlords for more favourable terms, as well as looking at locations and store formats.  

“We’ll continue to pull together to make our business better to secure the future of over 16,000 team members. 

 “We’ll be doing everything we can to support our affected team members who will be offered any available positions in nearby stores.  

“We apologise to customers but will continue to offer them everything they need in nearby stores or the Wilko website.”  

A spokesperson for Wilko said: “Wilko has, with regret, briefed its team members in Erith of the decision to close the store because favourable lease terms cannot be agreed with the landlord. 

“We have been looking at our options, but the reality is that we have been unable to reach an agreement with the landlord that makes this store commercially viable.” 

Have you got a story for us? You can contact us here.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to keep up with all the latest news.

Sign up to our newsletters to get updates sent straight to your inbox.