While many high street shops had hoped that the run up to the holidays would have provided the much needed revenue to keep them afloat, at least for the time being, many face insolvency or at least closures of a good percentage of their locations.
Amongst those stores looking to take big hits is the lingerie chain La Senza which has been struggling in the face of poor sales. Along with the high street lingerie retailer, two other big name retailers are gearing towards closures as well. Both Past Times and Blacks Leisure are experiencing bleak prospects for 2012.
According to market analysts, as many as 40,000 people could be facing unemployment this year in the early months and some of the stores where they were employed could become insolvent. In an effort to forestall what many believe to be the inevitable bankruptcy, these chains are downsizing on personnel in huge ways.
In an article posted in The Guardian, it is expected that Pat Times and Blacks will be cutting staff as early as the first weeks of January with more layoffs to follow. La Senza has announced that they would be closing at least 80 of their retail locations and information on just which stores will be out of business is on the company’s website.
According to Jonathan De Mello of CBRE consultancy, the UK may not have declared an official recession but the retail sector is certainly in recession as a result of poor sales and falling profits. Other retailers such as the shoe group Barratts Priceless has cut more than 1,800 employees and that number could very well double within the coming days and weeks.
Of course there is always seasonal holiday staff that is let go after the run up to Christmas and New Year’s, but this is much more than a laying off of seasonal help. Analysts project that the retail sector will be in an all-out recession in 2012 with some of the biggest retail chains fighting for their very survival.
