Companies

Clarks to cut a further 150 jobs

Jun 21, 2024 United Kingdom

The British footwear specialist is reportedly set to slash 150 office jobs, as losses widened last year. The latest job cuts come after the company made 103 roles redundant in 2023

According to Drapers, more than 150 jobs are at risk at Clarks after the retailer posted a loss for the year ended on the 31st of December. The affected employees are believed to be spread across Clarks’ global offices, including its UK head office in Somerset, and its Americas base in Massachusetts. The company also has offices in Shanghai, Tokyo, Singapore and Paris.

While Clarks saw a slight increase in sales of 1.4% in 2023 as compared to the previous year, its profits took a big hit. The operating loss was 20.3 million pounds (24.1 million euros), as compared to a profit of 54.5 million pounds (65.0 million euros) in the previous year, and the net loss was 32.1 million pounds (38.1 million euros), a sharp fall from a profit of 22.4 million pounds (26.6 million euros) in 2022.

The company attributed this underperformance to weak demand in full-price channels, overstocked wholesale partners, a promotional market environment and inflationary pressure on product costs. “A combination of the above factors has resulted in a loss after tax performance short of target expectations and last year’s levels. The business and trading environment at the close of 2023 is one of ongoing uncertainty and relative pessimism, especially in the Western hemisphere”, said Clarks in the filling.

The news comes after 103 jobs were made redundant at the end of last year. At the time, the decision was based on difficult economic headwinds and a cost-of-living crisis.

Image Credits: drapersonline.com

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