The Body Shop will shut a further 75 stores resulting in nearly 500 job losses over the coming weeks as administrators take measures to restructure the UK business.
The struggling beauty chain said it will be closing the stores in phases over the next four to six weeks, resulting in 489 job losses, as it looks to reduce its store footprint and return to financial stability.
This comes after administrators FRP Advisory announced the closure of seven stores with immediate effect and cut 40% of jobs at the retailer’s headquarters earlier this month.
The remaining 116 stores will stay open, administrators confirmed.
FRP said a reduced store footprint will help the retailer to “focus on the brand’s products, online sales channels and wholesale strategies, bringing the brand in line with industry peers and supporting a return to financial stability”.
Tony Wright, joint administrator at FRP Advisory, said: “In taking swift action to right-size The Body Shop UK store portfolio, we have stabilised the business and are providing the best opportunity for this iconic brand to have a long-term, sustainable future. The UK business continues to trade in administration and we remain fully focused on exploring all options to take the business forward.”
Retail Week previously reported that The Body Shop’s businesses across continental Europe are in danger of collapse after being offloaded to an international family office, leaving the fate of thousands of jobs and hundreds of stores in multiple countries in the balance.
Over 2,000 employees in Europe are at risk as the ownership in markets including France, Portugal, Spain, Denmark and Sweden remains unclear.
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