70 Homebase stores saved from closure but 50 still at risk

A bargain store billionaire has saved 70 Homebase stores from closure – but 50 are still at risk. Chris Dawson, owner of The Range, has rescued 70 stores through a pre-pack administration deal and Homebase is preparing to appoint administrators, according to reports,

Mr Dawson has also bought Homebase's 40-year-old brand and its website as part of the deal. Homebase currently operates 119 stores nationwide, and the buyout has saved approximately 1,600 jobs, but around 2,000 jobs and 49 stores face uncertainty.

Alex Simpkin, chief executive of CDS Superstores, owner of The Range, said: "We've stepped in following the sad demise of the much-loved Homebase brand, which has had a long and previously successful history of helping UK households with their DIY projects and gardening needs, for over 45-years.

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"The Homebase brand will continue to trade online, and the acquired stores will continue to trade as Homebase over the coming months until they are transferred to CDS, when they will quickly re-open as The Range superstores."

Damian McGloughlin, chief executive of Homebase, said today: "It has been an incredibly challenging three years for the home and garden improvement market. My priority is and continues to be our team members, and I recognise that this news will be unsettling for them.

"I want to thank our team members and supplier partners from the bottom of my heart for their hard work and commitment over many years." The Homebase chain has had a chequered history since it was created by Sainsbury’s in 1979 and sold off by the supermarket in 2006.

Sainsbury’s acquired 10 Homebase stores in August for £130m to convert them into large supermarkets, shrinking the chain to slightly more than 130 outlets, almost half the 250 it had when Hilco bought it. The Range operates 210 stores in the UK and Ireland.