Discount retailer Wilko is reportedly seeking a £30 million debt facility amid plummeting sales.

Wilko recently sold its Nottingham-based distribution centre to logistics company DHL for £48 million in a move to “unlock additional capital”.

The Guardian said the debt facility was not sought until Wilko fell almost £37 million into the red.

Despite its troubles, Wilko told the newspaper it paid its owners, led by the Wilkinson family, over £2 million in the year ending January 2022.

A further £750,000 was paid in February, despite a nearly three per cent fall in sales to £1.3 billion.

The company also slid to an almost £37 million pre-tax loss from a £2.5 million profit a year before.

Stating that trading conditions “remained challenging” amid fragile consumer sentiment due to ongoing supply chain disruption and rising cost inflation, Wilko said it expected underlying sales to continue to fall in 2022.

The company also made cuts as it predicted further pressure on costs from rising energy bills.

Wilko said that there were no immediate issues with liquidity, with Jerome Saint-Marc, Wilko chief executive, stating: “Our relationship with our lending partners is solid.”

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