... There are however a few Shops that I do visit fairly regularly and one of these is Wilkinsons.
With over 250 different Stores scattered throughout the UK there is a pretty good chance that there is a Wilkinsons Store somewhere near you. In Sheffield, where I live there are four different ... Read review
Advantages: Cheap, Good Quality Goods Disadvantages: Long Queues, Always Changing Layout
...by its founder J K Wilkinson and other members of his Family. Today things may seem to be a far cry from these early days but on a closer inspection of these Stores there are still many similarities with today's modern Stores to those that existed over seven decades ago.
To begin with Wilkinson's are still a Family run business. More importantly however they still play a very active roll within the local Communities where they are ... ...
All of the Wilkinson Stores that I am familiar with are set out fairly similarly. They are large and spacious and the larger Stores like the one in my City Centre are on two different floors.
The range of Goods that they sell could be grouped loosely into a single group called Household Goods. However on closer inspection the range of Goods that they sell would probably be sub-divided as: DIY, Decorating, Toiletries, Cleaning ... more
I have never been a very loyal shopper, or a very happy one come to think of it, flicking awkwardly between the main five Supermarkets to buy my Groceries, depending on which one has annoyed me the least over the previous few weeks. There are however a few Shops that I do visit fairly regularly and one of these is Wilkinsons.
With over 250 different Stores scattered throughout the UK there is a pretty good chance that there is a Wilkinsons Store somewhere near you. In Sheffield, where I live there are four different Stores. The largest of these is located in the City Centre, as you might expect with the three other Stores taking up positions in large suburban, out of town Shopping Centres.
The main distribution centre for Wilkinsons is only a few miles from where I live and for many years I mistakenly thought that the Company had its origins in this part of Northern England. In fact the first Wilkinson's Store opened in Leicester some seventy miles to the South.
Wilkinson's very first Store opened in Leicester in 1930. This was a very small community Shop that was run by its founder J K Wilkinson and other members of his Family. Today things may seem to be a far cry from these early days but on a closer inspection of these Stores there are still many similarities with today's modern Stores to those that existed over seven decades ago.
To begin with Wilkinson's are still a Family run business. More importantly however they still play a very active roll within the local Communities where they are based, supporting local Schools and Charities in over 200 different Towns and Cities in England and Wales. The Philosophy of the Company has never changed, which is basically to provide the best range of good quality products at the lowest possible price.
All of the Wilkinson Stores that I am familiar with are set out fairly similarly. They are large and spacious and the larger Stores like the one in my City Centre are on two different floors.
The range of Goods that they sell could be grouped loosely into a single group called Household Goods. However on closer inspection the range of Goods that they sell would probably be sub-divided as: DIY, Decorating, Toiletries, Cleaning Products, Kitchenware, Garden, Home Living, Pet Products, Stationary, Confectionary and Seasonal Goods.
The range of Goods does vary slightly from Store to Store but generally the range of DIY Goods sold are limited in the smaller Stores. My City Centre Store does sell a small range of Power Tools including Drills, Electric Screwdrivers, Grinders etc plus hand held equipment like Saws and Planers, but these are not available in the smaller outlets. These Goods are branded including well known names like Bosch and Black & Decker but the best value products are the ones that are Wilkinson's own brand name, called Wilko.
The Decorating section is usually quite an extensive one. These include Wallpaper, Paint, plus all their related items like Paint Brushers and Rollers. I have found that these Goods always represent excellent value for money although I am not too keen on the Wilko range of Paints as these have a very strong smell that catches the back of the throat.
Toiletries and Cleaning Products are another couple of large sections and these are the areas that I tend to head towards most frequently to stock up on everyday things like Bleach, Washing up Liquid and Toilet Rolls. Again these are usually good value for money and the Wilko own brand products within this range are of a good quality.
The Kitchenware section tends to vary in size and standard depending on the size of the Store but the larger ones have a good selection of things like Pans, Cutlery and Crockery.
Garden, Home Living and Pet Products again vary with the size of the Store but my City Centre Store has a good range of Pet Food available. Cat Food is currently on offer for both Whiskas and Felix. This is a buy two get one can free offer and makes them cheaper than anywhere else around. Needless to say since I have two greedy Cats I am currently taking advantage of this offer and stocking up.
The Garden and Home Living section has the whole of the upper floor dedicated to it in my City Centre Store. The Garden section does not only just sell Plants but also things like Lawn Mowers and Hedge Trimmers. Again these goods are branded but they also have their own Wilko range that represents the best value for money for these Goods.
Confectionary is somewhat limited and usually consists of just a few Sweets positioned strategically around the Check-outs.
Seasonal Goods often take up a large amount of the floor space. At the moment my local Stores are bulging with Christmas Goods and Gifts and at Easter time there are plenty of Easter Eggs.
So to summarise Wilkinson's Stores sell a wide range of Goods and they also have a large range of Goods available within their own Wilko brand. They have a number of different offers throughout the year and also seem to get quite a lot of end of the line stock that they sell off cheap in Bargain Bins.
With good value products and lots of bargains it is hardly surprising that the queues at the checkout can sometimes be quite long. There are ten checkouts available in the Store that I use most frequently but even with all of these the queues can sometimes be halfway to the back wall. Probably in response to this they are now installing self scanning machines in many of their Stores but my experiencing of using this was not very good.
If you have not come across these self scan systems before then basically they work by placing your items under a scanner yourself. When you have finished the machine totals up the value of the Goods in your basket and trolley and you pay at the same machine with a Visa or Debit Card. Unfortunately I found that almost every item failed to scan resulting in an alarm going off which meant that I had to wait for a member of staff and then when I was finally finished I had to join a queue to have various security tags removed from my Goods. In the end I would have been better joining the check-out queues, but then to be fair I suppose that this kind of thing is still in its early days, and therefore this is not a criticism that is unique to Wilkinson's.
If I were allowed to have a little bit of a moan then I would say that the constantly changing layout of the Stores is something that annoys me. I know that it is a ploy adopted by many different Stores these days in an attempt to get you lost on aisles that you wouldn't normally dream of visiting. In the hope that whilst there you will suddenly develop the urge to impulse buy, but please stop it, because I for one very it very annoying.
Overall however I do think that Wilkinson's is one of the better High Street Stores around and a lot of the Goods that they sell are definitely good value for money. I have also found that their Staff are always very helpful and they are also very smartly dressed in a red and yellow uniform. Then again with constantly changing around the position of their Goods it is essential that someone does know where to find things.
I have never had to return anything back to Wilkinson's so I cannot really comment on this aspect other than to say that all of their products do come with a money back guarantee.
The opening hours for the Stores does vary from Store to Store but many are open late and also on a Sunday.
Advantages: cheap and decent quality, massive range Disadvantages: of course there is some tat
I'm in the process of buying a house, and when it goes through I will have loads of work to do to it before I can move in (the 70s have got a lot to answer for in terms of DIY, I can tell you). Also, because I've been sharing a house for the last few years, I'm, going to need to buy tons of household goods. I've been driving around loads of retail parks and scouring loads of internet sites and my little notebook of items to be purchased has had me ... ...then my dad (a veteran bargain hunter and ex building trade worker who knows the difference between quality products and tat) suggested I try Wilko. I laughed. Me at Wilko? But I am Habitat woman incarnate! You wouldn't catch me in a crap place like that!
But a bit of realism later, I gave in and agreed to accompany him and have my mind changed (or not, as I insisted). And how glad I am I did. What a bloody marvellous shop!
The Wilko in my town ...
sandrabarber 18.10.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Wilkinson (Shop)
Advantages: Great products at low prices Disadvantages: can have long queues at times
At a glance you'd be forgiven for thinking that Wilko was a cheap, nasty discount store that sold naff products and staff who think excellent customer service is talking to you like crap. You'd be wrong then.
Next time your passing go on in, if you haven't already. They are rapidly expanding their stores nationwaide so if you don't have one in your area now you soon will. They are basically a housewares store come D.I.Y chain and seel own branded ... ...one of those shops which is hard to go in and come out without having spent a fortune on products you think are "too good value not to buy". Household products are aplenty and extremely good value. They sell bleach to washing powder, clothes pegs to disinfectant and batteries to polishes. It's well worth buying all your household products from here as it could save you a bit of dosh.
They have a great pets section which sells foods, bedding, accesories, ...
java 31.08.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Wilkinson (Shop)
Advantages: good value seeds Disadvantages: prices going up , variable quality
Wilkinson's the hardware shop is a Worksop based chain that are lovingly known as Wilko's .I used to work for them and I am a fan of this shop but less so than I used to be .
They have branches in such places as Nottingham , Shipley , Barnsley , Huddersfield , Sheffield , Chesterfield and Middlesbrough but are opening more down in the South of England.
The shop prides itself on it's low and good value prices . However I have noticed that the prices ... ...now there is little difference between them and say Woolworths in many products.
Wilko's stock all manner of products . They range from screws , nails , compost , seeds , bulbs , shrubs , pet food , kitchen products such as brillo pads , kitchen towels .
They also sell a lot of decorating stuff such as paint , emulsion , wallpaper and DIY products such as sand , cement , tiles and some basic things for the car such as De icer etc.
A pretty impressive ...
Gardenex 21.03.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Wilkinson (Shop)
Advantages: see opinion Disadvantages: see opinion
When Wilkinson's first opened in Basildon I took little notice. Then my Dad said his builder friend (who is know for being frugal) said they were a great place to shop so I wandered in. Now I'm a real bargain lover, tell me you bought a designer suit for just £200 and I won't be impressed, tell me you bought 5 suits for £200 and you've got my attention!
~~~ The Motto ~~~
Yep, Wilkinson's have a motto its "Low, Low Prices Everytime". They live up ... ...regular discounts on a highlighted item, currently this is 25% off all Wilko hand tools, locks and latches. You always know what's going on at Wilkinson's as they insert small (16 page) catalogues in your local papers. I love this catalogue, it always makes me want to rush down there and bag some bargains!
~~~ The Store ~~~
Our Wilkinson's is a big new store in a new shopping center in town. Wilkinson's is a large store with wide aisles and plenty ...
KathrynE 15.04.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Wilkinson (Shop)
Advantages: It sells everything, and at very reasonable prices. Disadvantages: In my local store the Security Guard is of undefined gender, and scares me ;)
...on most occassions I find Wilkinson far superior. It utilises its floor space in the best possible way, you rarely find anything out of stock, and you enter the store virtually certain that you will find a selection of the products that you are looking for. I should imagine for a homeowner (sadly I am not amongst these ranks as yet) it is invaluable.
Another bonus is that it is always extremely neat and tidy, at least in the two stores I have knowledge ... ...know is somewhat overlooked in other shops of its kind, but Wilko's standards never fall, it always looks great, even the most mundane of displays.
I am very impressed at Wilko by the range of wall papers that they offer. Often, if a customer in FADS can't find what he/she wants they can be guided to Wilkinsons, as they even have a range of children's paers, like Barbie, etc. For such a large store, that sells such a wide range of goods, this is ...
Fuschia 30.03.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Wilkinson (Shop)
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Advantages: Great low prices and fantastic variety. Disadvantages: Not really any, unless you start being pedantic...
relatively new section is still continuously expanding, it's definitely a great place to shop for some bargain art materials.
In terms of the atmosphere of the stores; many of the Wilkinson stores are very large shops. Their motif colours are red and creamy beige - the general atmosphere of the store is generally a 'beigy' feel. Not much has been paid to attention in terms of interior design, but most importantly the stores are usually clean and spacious. A lot of low cost pound sharps have a harsh cold 'feel' to them, this probably just me but generally I find Wilkinson's the opposite and this is one of the best things that set them apart.
The staff are generally friendly and helpful - they are usually wearing tomato red polo shirts with a yellow Wilkinson's logo on. Personally, I have to remember to look for this before I approach anyone ...
Advantages: range and prices Disadvantages: layout
My expereinces of Wilkinsons' shops are limited to Redditch and Cheltenham, but if these are reasonably typical, then they are a shop worth venturing into.
Wilkinsons are in the cheap and cheerful end of the market - comparable in many ways to the likes of Pound Stretcher. However, where most bargin shops offer goods of dubious quality, Wilkinson offers a significant number of recognisable brands at low prices, and an own brand range of quite respectable quality.
Range of products: That I have seen - household ware, baby bedding, toiletries, gardening stuff, wicker baskets, clothes, furniture, glassware, paints, wallpaper, toys, ornaments - they don't do much in the way of food, but in terms of hosuehold items, they do almost anything you can think of. Precise contents of the shop do seem to vary, so if you see something you like ...
Bryn_Pearson 28.11.2002
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Wilkinson (Shop)
Advantages: All that stuff, under one roof Disadvantages: As Above
Wilkinson’s (or Wilko’s as it was previously known) is as tempting for shoppers as a shiny piece of jewellery is to a magpie. Very. For those of you who don’t know it, Wilkinson’s is bit like that shop in Open all Hours (you know with a very young David Jason) it really does sell everything (unfortunately the customer service is often on a par with Ronnie Barker’s!)
My first experience of Wilkinson’s came about as we were in the process of buying a house, and subsequently needed things to put in it. Important things such as glasses, cutlery, cooking implements and stuff like that. Now I used to be quite snobby about Wilko’s, but now I go in there with great regularity, handily I have to walk past one on the way back to my car each and every day and can often be seen snatching up ...
