Mothercare is axing up to 200 head office jobs in an attempt to cut costs, after agreeing a rescue plan with creditors earlier this year.
The retailer employs500 people at its head office in total. it will create another 50 roles following the redundancies and will attempt to redeploy staff where possible.
Mothercare is simplifying the UK business, which will be treated the same as an international franchise partner in recognition of how tough the UK market is and how much more profitable the international business is.
Mothercare identified £19m cost savings after going through a refinancing process in conjunction with its creditors. It was forced to implement a CVA during the summer after issuing a profit warning at the beginning of the year.
The business, which was trading well until late 2017, took the bizarre step of firing and then re-hiring its chief executive Mark Newton-Jones in the spring, after chairman Alan Parker sacked Newton-Jones before then being let go himself.
A spokesman said: “We have today been communicating with our staff regarding the next stage of Mothercare’s transformation to ensure we have a sustainable, global brand which can be the leading global specialist for parents and young children. This follows the comprehensive measures taken in recent months to provide a renewed and stable financial structure for the group.
“Unfortunately, this could potentially lead to around 200 roles being made redundant across our current head office structure, but will lead to the creation of 50 new roles and we will redeploy staff where possible. We will be supporting our colleagues throughout the consultation process.”
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