Poundland has dismissed reports that it could axe of up to 10% of its estate in the wake of South African giant Steinhoff International’s £597 takeover of the British business in September.

Reports have claimed the bargain-basement retailer is looking to slash up to 80 shops from its 900-strong estate.

The speculation has focused on 99p Stores which Poundland bought for £55m last year, most of which it has since converted to its own fascia.

It is believed the conversions mean Poundland now has many duplicate stores that have been cannibalising each other.

The average size of former 99p Stores are about 6,500 sq ft, which would make them bigger that most convenience outlets. Reports suggested that Poundland had provided property agents with a list of stores it was keen to offload.

A Poundland spokesman dismissed the reports as “property industry chatter”.

While Poundland continued to look at “optimising its estate” in the wake of its acquisition of the 99p Stores chain, “there’s no new news”, the spokesman said.