Research reveals that almost 15,000 jobs have been lost in 2023 in a ‘brutal start to the year’

This comes as many retailers have found themselves in financial trouble this year, such as Paperchase, M&Co and more
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Around 15,000 British retail jobs have already been cut in 2023, in what is being labelled as a “brutal start to the year” for the high street. According to the Centre for Retail Research (CRR), 14,874 retail job losses have been announced.

This year has seen many national retailers such as stationery brand Paperchase, clothing chain M&Co and Tile Giant all go bust in recent weeks. In addition to this, New Look, Wilko, Tesco and other giant retailers have cut jobs.

According to the research carried out, most of the job losses which account for over 11,000 are at large retailers including Tesco and Asda who are carrying out cost cutting programmes and restructuring operations.

A further 3,185 jobs have been lost due to retailers who have collapsed. One example of this is Paperchase, who entered administration in January as a result of rising costs coupled with a drop in sales.

The brand, along with its intellectual property was eventually picked up by Tesco but did not include Paperchase’s 106 stores across the UK and Ireland, leading to around 250 immediate job losses and uncertainty for a further 500 Paperchase employees.

Speaking to The Guardian, Prof Joshua Bamfield, the CRR’s director said “The process of rationalisation will continue at pace as retailers continue to reduce their cost base,” he said. “We are unlikely to see any respite in job losses in 2023 after a brutal start to the year.”

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