Established with a single hardware shop in Leicester in 1930 Wilko is listed at number 36 in the Sunday Times HSBC Top Track 100 table of Britain’s privately owned companies with the largest sales published yesterday. The retailer now sells goods from more than 400 UK stores and online including kitchenware, garden tools and cleaning products.

Profits were up 45% last year to £57m, thanks to lower costs and buoyant sales during the key Christmas period. The Nottinghamshire firm, which employs close to 21,000 staff, has offices in Hong Kong and India and is owned by the founder’s family including his granddaughter Lisa Wilkinson who chairs the board.

Value retailer Home Bargains came in at number 33. Founder and managing director Tom Morris opened his first shop in Liverpool in 1976 when its weekly takings were around £85. Last year he paid himself a dividend of £38m after turnover grew 9% to £1.6bn. Still owned by the Morris family, the business has more than 17,000 staff and 420 stores nationwide, offering branded goods at low prices.

Despite the growing economic and political uncertainty facing the UK following the decision to leave the EU, almost three quarters of the table increased sales in their last financial year; their combined sales rose 7% to £185bn.

Some have grown through mergers and acquisitions, others organically. The 100 companies added a total of 29,000 members of staff in the last year – some as a result of acquisitions - and now employ more than 981,000. Profits grew 4% to £19.4bn but the combined debts remained high at £90bn.

The sector with the highest number of companies is services with 41, followed by retail with 27. Retail fared best in terms of growth, with sales up 12% in the last financial year.

At number 80, The Range, owned by entrepreneur Chris Dawson and his wife has climbed 10 places up the list after growing its turnover by more than £100m in the past year.

The Plymouth-based home and garden store chain has increased sales by 15% in the past 12 months to £761m with profits of £88m. In recent months The Range opened a new, purpose built distribution centre at Avonmouth near Bristol at a cost of over £100m and created 1,000 jobs.

The Range now employs 9,500 people, has 140 stores with plans to open a further 30 during 2017.