Boots to cut up to 400 jobs as it reshapes photo business

The health and beauty giant is shutting 220 of its 320 in-store photo labs across the UK following a slump in demand for traditional photo developing services.

Boots will continue to operate the remaining 100 labs, which offer one-hour services on photo gifts and processing rolls of film.

Its photo kiosks, which allow customers to print photographs directly from their smartphones, tablets, portable hard drives or USB sticks, will continue to operate in more than 1,000 Boots stores.

Boots said customers who no longer have access to a photo lab in their local store will be able to send films away for developing at its centralised photo lab in Nottingham.

As a result of the changes, Boots said up to 400 jobs have been placed at risk of redundancy, but insisted it would offer retraining and redeployment to impacted staff “where possible”.

Boots began a consultation with affected workers this morning, which will continue until August.

A Boots spokeswoman said: “Photo has always been a really important part of the Boots UK offer.

“Over the past few years customers’ expectations of photo services have continued to change, as they print fewer pictures but want to create more personalised photo gifts and items such as personalised photobooks, canvases and cards.

“As a result of these changing behaviours, Boots UK is adapting how it delivers photo services in store.”

The spokeswoman added: “Our focus we will now be on supporting any impacted colleagues through this, as we continue to transform our photo offer.”

The changes are the latest move by Boots to streamline its workforce amid rapidly changing shopper habits and the rise of ecommerce.

In June 2015, Boots cut 700 back office roles in a bid to make the business “fit for the future”.

And last February it revealed plans to strip out up to 350 assistant store manager roles in its larger shops as it moved to further “simplify” the business.