Yahoo Finance Woolworths trademark owner slaps down viral tweet claiming stores will reopen in UK
The owner of the Woolworths trademark has dismissed a widely shared tweet that said Woolies stores would reopen in the UK.
A tweet from an account called Woolworths UK claimed that some shops would open their doors on a trial basis in 2021. Woolworths closed its physical stores in the UK in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis.
The story was widely reported, with several national news outlets repeating the claim.
However, The Very Group, who own the company trademark in the UK, today said they had no knowledge of the reopening and that the account was not linked to them.
So... we’re popular (that’s for sure!)
Our trial stores will open in 2021. Very own the online Woolsworths, so we will be retail only. Before we launch we have a few legal contracts to sign, but we’re super excited!
This will be your Woolsworths ❤️ pic.twitter.com/SwEXD1Gs3w— Woolworths UK (@UKWoolworths)
A spokesperson told the Standard: “We own the Woolworths trademark in the UK. The Twitter account UKWoolworths is not connected to The Very Group.”
The original tweet from Woolworths UK said: "So... we’re popular (that’s for sure!)
"Our trial stores will open in 2021. Very own the online Woolsworths, so we will be retail only. Before we launch we have a few legal contracts to sign, but we’re super excited!
"This will be your Woolsworths."
Aside from the grammar, spelling mishap and posting from an iPhone, this seems to be 100% legit ... 🤔 Have we hit April 1st already 🤦♂️ pic.twitter.com/VEAcWwgVNb
— Stephen Pugh 🏴🏳️🌈 (@MrStephenPugh)
However, social media users quickly noticed that the tweet had several spelling mistakes, including calling Woolworths "Woolsworths".
As well as the spelling mistakes, the account has not been verified by Twitter, and sent out its first tweet just hours before the announcement.
A website link in the Twitter page bio also did not work.
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