A host of East Lancashire businesses are owed thousands of pounds by doomed retailer Wilko following its collapse.

The discount retailer has been shutting its 400 UK stores over the past month after going into administration in August.

The final 41 stores closed at the end of trading on Sunday. The Blackburn store in King William Street closed on last Thursday.

Staff and shoppers alike spoke of their sadness at the closure of Wilko in Blackburn last week as it followed hundreds of stores across the country in closing.

Now, in the administrator's statement of affairs published on Companies House, details of the long list of creditors owed money by Wilko has been revealed.

The total amount owed creditors is more than £257 million of which close to £1m was owed to companies in Blackburn, whilst three companies were listed as being owed £600,000 in Burnley, and firms across the rest of East Lancashire, a number of companies are owed more than £300,000.

Some of the highest amounts owed included to Burnley-based manufacturer of housewares What More, and the toilet paper manufacturer Accrol Papers.

Accrol Papers, based in Roman Road, Blackburn, is the company owed the most, listed as being due £367,675 by Wilko, however the company has said this information on an official Companies House document is "incorrect".

What More, based at Shuttleworth Mead Business Park, is owed £309,718, but declined to comment on the matter.

Other creditors included Rectella, based in Bancroft Road, Burnley, which is owed £238,338, while SG UK International, based at Frontier Park, Blackburn, is owed a total of £203,953, and Pets Choice Blackburn is due £196,728.

Other Blackburn firms owed money are PSI, the Adhan Group, G Plants, and Graham & Brown, while in Darwen, Holden Decor is owed cash.

Elsewhere other creditors include Dugdale Davies Pet Treats of Burnley, Waterfoot's Stewardship Solutions and Arthouse, Hapton's Exertis, and Navigation Distribution in Sough. 

Smaller companies were also listed owed amounts from £450 to £11,000.

Other local firms contacted also did not wish to make an official comment.

The full list of East Lancashire creditors to Wilko is: 

  • Stewardship Solutions, near Waterfoot: £1,008
  • PSI, Parkside Mill, Blackburn: £1,178
  • AG Retail (Adhan Group), Preston New Road, Blackburn: £28,635
  • G Plants, Kelly Street, Blackburn: £96,121
  • Exertis UK, Magnesium Way, Hapton: £450
  • Navigation Distribution, Colne Road, Sough: £11,997
  • Esselle Retail (trading as Arthouse), Bacup Road, Waterfoot: £32,156
  • SG UK International, Frontier Park, Blackburn: £203,953
  • Dugdale Davies Pet Treats, Enterprise Way, Burnley: £86,399
  • Graham & Brown, Harwood Street, Blackburn: £183,016
  • Holden Décor, Grimshaw Street, Darwen: £38,173
  • Pets Choice, Whitebirk Industrial Estate, Blackburn: £196,728
  • Rectella, Bancroft Road, Burnley: £238,338
  • What More, Shuttleworth Mead Business Park, Burnley: £309,718
  • Arthouse, Bacup Road, Waterfoot: £1,159
  • Accrol Papers, Roman Road, Blackburn: £367,675

Wilko, founded by James Kemsey Wilkinson in Leicester in 1930, hired administrators from PwC after it came under pressure from weak consumer spending and debts to suppliers.

PwC held talks with interested firms but was unable to secure a rescue deal for the whole firm, with a potential takeover by HMV owner Doug Putman collapsing.

As a result, administrators sold off a raft of the company’s assets in order to pay off creditors. Deals were agreed to sell up to 71 stores to Poundland and to sell up to 51 shops to fellow rival discounter B&M.

However, both deals did not include staff.

Last week, Poundland said it had offered jobs to more than 200 former Wilko workers and has already reopened 20 of these sites under its brand.