Holiday group to close stores as customers move from bricks to clicks

Three Thomas Cook outlets in the North West are earmarked for closure after the holiday group announced restructuring plans today.

It said it will close 21 of its shops, blaming customers’ continued use of online booking systems, rather than visiting the group’s high street stores.

Last year 64% of all its bookings in the UK were made online.

Among the shops set to shut are Bury Haymarket, and Accrington, both in Lancashire, and a Llandudno site in North Wales.

As a result of the latest shake-up by the company, 102 customer-facing roles will be axed due to store closures, while a further 218 jobs will be shed “following a review of the retail workforce”.

In September the firm warned that its profits would be hit after the Summer heatwave led to many people taking their holidays in the UK.

Last November it issued a second profit warning when it said Winter bookings were also down.

The closure plans will leave a total of 566 Thomas Cook shops.

The firm’s chief of tour operating, Will Waggott, said: “Today’s announcement reflects the wider challenges seen on the High Street, with more and more customers choosing to book online.”

The travel company said most of the stores being closed were not profitable, and were chosen for closure as their leases were due for renewal.

It also claimed that, as well as weather-related woes it has faced competition from online travel agents and low-cost airlines, while political unrest in holiday destinations such as Turkey has been disruptive to its business.

A consultation process with affected staff and unions has begun, the company said.

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