Inside the incredible Poundland family home with hidden swimming pool as family faces £10m inheritance tax battle
LUDSTONE Hall is a world away from the home Poundland co-founder Steve Smith grew up in.
The Grade-I listed Jacobean mansion boasts nine bedrooms, seven bathrooms, a coach house and museum dedicated to the high street discount chain.
When Steve was growing up in the 1960s his dad, Keith, a former draughtsman, worked on a stall in Bilston Market in Wolverhampton and they lived in a terraced house.
The idea for Poundland started on his dad’s stall as he noticed that they made more money on items in the 10p to £1 box and at 17, Steve opened his first branch of Poundland in Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire.
When the retailer was at the height of its growth in 1997 his dad Keith and mum Maureen bought Ludstone Hall for £2.5million, it was a testament to the hard work that his family had put into building Poundland.
But the time has come for Steven to sell his parents’ home.
When Keith passed away in August 2022 he left his estate in a trust to his wife Maureen.
But she died just months later in a cruel twist of fate.
Her death plunged the family into a complex £10 million inheritance tax battle with HM Revenue and Customs.
The family now needs to sell the house as they can no longer afford to keep it.
For every week that the tax bill remains unpaid, the family are charged around £14,500 in interest.
In total, the interest would add around £750,000 a year to their final bill.
Steven put the property on the market ten months ago, and it now has an asking price of £10,425,000.
“I’ll be sad to sell the house,” he tells me, eyes watering.
“After you’ve worked hard and paid all your taxes, but you can’t keep the money.”
As Steven takes me round the house there’s a tinge of sadness in his voice as he recounts some of his favourite memories.
How was Poundland founded?
STEVEN Smith co-founded Poundland in 1990 after being inspired while working on his parents’ market stall in Bilston, West Midlands.
He quickly realised that sometimes the stall made more money from selling items from its 10p to £1 box than from its takings from everything else on the stall.
The realisation sparked the idea to start a budget shop where everything cost just £1.
Steven opened his first store in Burton upon Trent in 1990 with a £50,000 loan from his father, Keith Smith.
At first it was difficult to convince landlords and shopping centres to lease units to the business as they did not believe it would make any money.
But the country was suffering from a recession, so once Poundland was up and running, it quickly took hold.
Poundland made a profit of £13,000 on its first day of trading.
In the following years the chain opened several other stores, including in the prestigious Meadowhall shopping centre.
By 1995 the business had established a head office and distribution centre in Wolverhampton, where the family still live.
In 2002, Steven sold the business to Advent International for £50 million.
The house has clearly played host to many parties and celebrations.
For a millennium bash Keith built a dance floor which at the touch of a button sinks into the floor, revealing a full-size pool.
Above it is a chandelier of three cherubs and around the edge are centurions and classical figures.
There’s even an enormous hot tub which can double up as a stage when it is covered.
“Once we had a party and Dad started playing the Titanic song, and I thought it would be funny to lower the floor down,” Steven said.
But that’s not the only unusual feature Keith added after he bought the property in 1997 for £2.5 million.
In the living room there’s a statue of a woman holding a tea tray who looks rather like Mrs Miggins, the coffee shop owner from Blackadder.
In another room a 14-seater original solid oak table sits next to a Toby Jug of Margaret Thatcher.
Even the metal radiators have been spray-painted gold.
And the house has a few secrets of its own.
The existing house was built in 1607 by John Whitmore and it remained in that family for more than 250 years.
Many of the original features have been preserved, including a secret room behind a section of wood panelling in the top floor chapel.
“There are a few secret rooms or secret doors. We’ve found about four so far,” he said.
Legend has it there’s also a secret tunnel which was used by monks and led to the nearby church in Claverley.
Sadly the family have never found it, Steven adds.
Maureen’s personality is also evident throughout the home.
The couple’s master bedroom comes with a baby pink en-suite bathroom complete with LED ceiling lights.
There’s a jacuzzi whirlpool bath, enormous shower room and gold-plated taps.
Another bathroom has a fuchsia sink decorated with fleur de lis emblems.
Water pours into it from a faucet in the shape of an enormous gold swan.
The bath tub is decorated in the same colours and is complete with a shower head in the shape of a birdcage.
The property is clearly a home, complete with countless family photos, trinkets and Yankee Candles.
On the landing Steven shows me a picture frame which displays pictures of the family’s friends and loved ones.
Among the smiling faces I spot a picture of Prince William and another of Prince Harry.
On another wall is a display case of around 100 thimbles which Maureen collected during family holidays.
“Mum loved to sew,” Steven tells me.
“She used to make and knit all of my clothes when I was a kid.”
The irony is not lost on me when he later puts on a black Burberry coat to take me around the grounds of the property.
The main house is surrounded by a moat and there’s a knot garden, lake, walled kitchen garden and woodland.
The Smith family’s story is equally as incredible as the house they have turned into a home.
After selling the business in 1988, Keith and Maureen decided to relocate to Mallorca but Steven and his partner Tracey chose to remain in the UK.
A museum in the old coach house is stuffed full of artefacts which show how Poundland became a high street giant.
Among the memorabilia is Steven’s first drawing of the Poundland logo.
There are even signs from the original Poundland stores, newspaper cuttings and brochures.
Steven plans to donate the memorabilia to Poundland once the property is sold.
Although he has since sold the company, Steven is still involved in several businesses.
There’s his mortgage company, quickmortgages.com, software firm and bridging loans operation to keep him busy.
A client even phones him to discuss a potential business opportunity while he gives me the tour.
But it seems Poundland will always be Steven’s proudest achievement.
While touring the mansion I find it almost impossible to picture it without its enigmatic residents.
Even the ducks on the property were fed with leftover bread from Poundland stores.
Meanwhile, the cows were given leftover sweets and chocolate whose packaging was damaged.
In the kitchen sits a box of Maureen’s ashes and her shopping list is still on the counter.
While sitting at the kitchen table Steven tells me about his dream buyer.
“I think the house needs a family. Mum and Dad loved living here for a long time, just Mum and Dad,” he said.
“This was their pride and joy. Just looking around, you can see how they looked after the place and what they did.”
Although some of the decor may be updated, it may take a while before the Smith legacy at Ludstone Hall is erased.
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