Popular discount store Wilko returns to Luton just eight weeks after closing

Ravneet Nandra reports from Luton for ITV News Anglia

The discount retailer Wilko has reopened another store just eight weeks after its closure.

The Wilko chain collapsed in August leading to thousands of job losses and the closure of more than 400 stores around the country.

On Friday morning, the two-storey shop in the The Mall Luton, Bedfordshire, was reopened by Deputy Mayor councillor Zanib Raja.

Some queued from as early as 7.30am, with the first 50 shoppers through the door given 'goody bags'.

Chris Dawson, chairman of Wilko, said: "This is where it used to live before and it's been on the high street for 93 and a half years. We're a big fan of the Wilko brand.

"Yes, everybody makes mistakes and we're here to try and repair that mistake. We've got a lot of faith and you can see by the crowds outside that a lot of people want to be here as well."

Asked whether the new store would prove popular in Luton second time around, Mr Dawson said: "You could put this next to Harrods and it would take money, because everybody whether they drive a Rolls Royce, get the train, or ride a bicycle to work, everybody loves a bargain, and that's what Wilko does."

Scott Wilkinson-McCormick was the first customer through the doors when the shop opened and said: "When we lost Wilko a few months ago there was a whole range of stuff you can't get in the town centre, or can't get easily in the town centre.

"With this open again, bang, it's just a big, big variety, a big choice for everybody."

The store has re-employed many of its former staff, with some returning from new jobs to "work with their old colleagues".

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