The ‘material shift in trade’ has now forced the British fashion retailer M&S to announce that it will be making as many as 7,000 jobs redundant in next 3 months.
The decision is being seen as a part of the retailer’s restructuring programme. The job cuts are expected to impact store staff, regional management as well as its support centre.
While stressing more on the 7,000 jobs cuts, M&S, reportedly, said that a significant portion of these job cuts will be early retirement and voluntary redundancy. These follow the 950 job cuts that the retailer had announced in July to make changes in its management structures.
M&S’ saw its total apparel sales and home section fall by 29 per cent in the 8 weeks since reopening of stores, while its store sales fell by 47.9 per cent. Digital sales, however, rose by 39.2 per cent.
The brick-and-mortar stores have indeed been a disappointing story for the retailer in the last 5 months, but then every second fashion retailer, across the globe, has been battling this crisis.
The retailer, however, said that despite having to take such hard decisions, the extended lockdowns and poor sales have taught it to work more flexibly and productively. M&S also spoke about its constant focus on training its staff for multi-tasking so that same staff can be used effectively for apparels and home section.
Speaking about job cuts, Richard Lim, Chief Executive, Retail Economics, said “M&S is desperately attempting to reposition the business towards a new-normal emerging in the sector.”
Founded in 1884, M&S is known for its clothes and home products and generates revenue of £10,181.9 million.
