Boots to cut more than 4,000 jobs due to pandemic
By Michele Maatouk
Date: Thursday 09 Jul 2020
(Sharecast News) - It was another grim day for the retail sector as pharmacy chain Boots joined department store John Lewis in announcing a round of job cuts due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Boots said it will axe more than 4,000 jobs, which represents 7% of its workforce. The company, which had already announced the closure of a number of branches, said it was "moving swiftly to address the impact of Covid-19" on the business by accelerating its transformation plan.
This includes a reorganisation of the Boots store employee structure, the closure of 48 Boots Opticians stores and an additional 20% headcount reduction in the UK support office.
News of the jobs cuts came as the group reported a 48% decline in UK comparable retail sales in the third quarter. Boots said it lost share in its categories in a sharply lower market as lockdown measures impacted high streets and shopping centres and meant more people were inclined to consolidate their shopping. This drop was partially offset by a 78% jump in Boots.com sales as Covid-19 boosted the online segment.
Walgreens Boots Alliance, which owns the Boots chain, said coronavirus dented third-quarter sales by around $700m to $750m, the majority of which was related to the Retail Pharmacy International division.
"This reflected a dramatic reduction in footfall in Boots UK stores - down 85% in April - as consumers were advised to leave home only for food and medicine," it said.
While most Boots stores remained open throughout UK lockdown, its largest premium beauty and fragrance counters were closed. In addition, more than 100 stores, mainly in high street, station and airport locations, were temporarily closed as were nearly all of its 600 opticians stores.
Walgreens also cautioned that retail conditions in the UK are expected to remain "very depressed" despite the gradual easing of restrictions.
Earlier on Thursday, John Lewis said up to 1,300 jobs were at risk as it confirmed it would not reopen eight stores post the coronavirus lockdown.
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