Woolworths Group plc

: This article is about the British Woolworths Group plc, and its stores. For other retailers of similar name, see Woolworth's.

History

Woolworths Limited was founded in the United Kingdom in 1909 as a subsidiary of the American company F.W. Woolworth Company. In 1982 it was acquired by Paternoster Stores Ltd, the forerunner of Kingfisher plc. Woolworths Group plc was formed by the demerger of Kingfisher's general merchandise business, and began trading as a listed company on the London Stock Exchange on August 28, 2001.

Related Topics:
1909 - F.W. Woolworth Company - 1982 - Kingfisher plc - London Stock Exchange - August 28 - 2001

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Woolworths trades predominantly in high street locations. Its ranges are aimed primarily at young mothers and children, though it is sometimes accused by the investment community of lacking a clear niche. It is a fairly downmarket chain, and key product ranges include toys, confectionery, electronic media, children's clothes and small household items. Woolworths announced it would commence refurbishment of all of its high street stores from 2004 onwards, as older stores opened between the 1950s and 1970s have not been modernised since, leading to a dated appearance.

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Woolworths opened some larger format stores under the Big W brand, similar to Wal-Mart in the US. Although initially successful, the format ultimately failed to catch on; the original plan had relied upon leveraging the involvement of other Kingfisher group retailers, but following the demerger this was no longer possible. In 2004, Woolworths sold some Big W stores to ASDA and Tesco, reduced the footage of the rest by half and re-opened them as Woolworths stores.

Related Topics:
Big W - Wal-Mart - 2004 - ASDA - Tesco

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