The battle to attract Croydon’s thrifty shoppers is set to get more intense as family-owned Poundworld announces it is ready to take on the mighty Poundland chain.

Poundworld is opening a 7,500sq m store next Saturday in the Centrale shopping centre, where HMV used to be.

And with its 241st store in the chain it is confident it can tempt shoppers away from Poundland.

Poundworld trading director Chris Edwards Junior said: “We’re excited to be opening our first store in Croydon at the Centrale shopping centre, creating 30 new retail jobs for the town.

“Our store has a massive range and is in a great location so we’re confident that we can tempt people away from Poundland with our fantastic bargains.

“We hope shoppers will take advantage of the great deals we have on a vast range that includes branded and value products, from groceries to cleaning products and pet care.”

Poundworld was recently the subject of a BBC documentary Pound Shop Wars.

The company was founded in Yorkshire in 1997.