Poundland founder left behind £38m fortune – his spouse died two months later

The founder of Poundland left behind a £38million fortune when he died. Keith Smith’s wife Maureen took on his enormous wealth and staggering country pile only to die just two months later.

Their Shropshire home is now on the market for a cool £8million and if estate agent photos of it are anything to go by, it certainly looks befitting of such a hefty price tag.

Until their deaths two years ago, Keith, and Maureen had lived together in Ludstone Hall since 1997. It boasts nine bedrooms, an indoor swimming pool and even a Poundland museum among many other staples of a millionaire’s mansion.

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Keith, who launched Poundland in 1990 with Maureen before selling it in 2002, died of lung cancer aged 79. The couple left their riches to son Steve, siblings Mandy and Sean, and charities, MailOnline reports.

According to a website dedicated to Ludstone Hall, it dates in some shape or form to 1086 and during medieval times a moat was dug to surround the house on three sides. “Legend has it that there is a tunnel from here to Claverley Church which the monks would use,” the site says.

The house as we see it now, however, was built several hundred years later for the Whitmore family in 1607. They kept the estate until 1867.

Ludstone.co.uk, which hasn’t been updated since 2020, states: “The current owners, Mr and Mrs Keith Smith, are dedicated to the maintenance and preservation of their home, thereby ensuring that it can be enjoyed by future generations.”

Diving into the renovated Jacobean mansion being sold by Keith and Maureen’s family, we can get a glimpse of the luxury they enjoyed. Not least the leisure complex, made up of a large indoor swimming pool for a few morning lengths to stretch the limbs out for yet another day exploring the vast grounds.

The buyer can look forward to serving themselves from a handmade oak bar, invite guests to a separate dining area and then climb into a hot tub – with or without them, depending on the kind of dinner party.

Budding Poundland enthusiasts out there, of which we’re sure there’s many, can sink their teeth into a museum showcasing the high street shop’s rise as well as Ludstone Hall’s own history in the converted coach house.

It’s good news for rich squash fans too as they’d need never leave the house again to play a game.

The Smith family grew Poundland up from an idea in 1990 to a 70-store empire by the time they sold it for £50million in 2002, The Sun reports.

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