Member Article

Liverpool’s Shop Direct to cut 95 jobs as it shifts to online trading

Liverpool clothes retailer Shop Direct is to cut 95 jobs from its staff of 4,700 as it moves to a greater presence online.

The company report that 90% of its sales are now generated online and it has posted its first profit in a decade in 2013.

This shift to online trading is also reflected in the fact that the company sent out 25 million catalogues to customers in 2005 but last year only distributed 1 million.

The company say the move to online trading is a move to simplify the business and adapt as its customers trends change.

Group CEO, Alex Baldock, said: “We’re pleased with our progress over the last two years. “We’ve moved the business into profit for the first time in a decade and are in good shape to continue to grow both sales and profit over the coming years. But our customer is changing fast and we need to keep pace with her.

“Amongst other initiatives, that means investing in cutting-edge technology and processes to become the world class digital retailer she wants, and ensuring we have the best platform to deliver that ambition. This is an extraordinary era for retail.

“Technology is changing customer expectations and behaviour and the pace of that change is like nothing we’ve seen before. We intend to simplify our business so that we continue to thrive in this rapidly changing environment.

“This is of course a tough time for some of our colleagues. I’d like to take this opportunity to say a big thank you to all of our people for their support and commitment as we continue our transformation.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Sophia Taha .