Discount retailer Poundworld has appointed administrators today (June 11) after the company failed to find a buyer for its business.

The chain held meetings with potential buyer R Capital earlier this month but the talks with the firm have collapsed, meaning that the company has been forced into administration.

Poundworld owns 355 stores across the UK and employs 7,000 members of staff. The company serves an estimated two million customers a week and also operates under the Bargain Buys brand name.

Accountancy firm Deloitte has been appointed as administrators and hopes to sell the business as a going concern. Deloitte said that Poundworld stores will continue to trade as normal with no redundancies at this time.

In its latest financial results, Poundworld posted losses of £17.1m for the 2016/17 year, a £5.4m increase on the previous year.