Retailer Laura Ashley set to close 40 stores
Laura Ashley, the home furnishings and fashion retailer, is set to close 40 stores across the UK as part of new restructuring plans.
Owned by Malayan United Industries (MUI), the retailer currently operates 13 stores in Yorkshire, with locations in Harrogate, Sheffield, Beverley and Leeds. Around 40 Laura Ashley stores have already closed since 2015.
These closures were announced by Andrew Khoo, who took over as MUI chairman from his father Khoo Kay Peng just last week.
Khoo announced that the retailer’s UK store network would be reduced from 160 sites to 120, but the remaining stores will be expanded.
Speaking to the Press Association, he said: “The direction I want to go is to have not so many stores, but maybe the ones we have could be larger. It’s more about showcasing the brand. It doesn’t really matter if they buy online or offline, we just want them to get inspired.”
MUI also plans to expand the Laura Ashley brand in China by initially establishing a strong online presence.
Khoo added: “We’re moving to Asia in a much bigger way. “We have a regional office in Singapore, it’s a dedicated office of about 10 people and it’s focused purely on ecommerce into China.
“Once we get a significant foothold in digital retail in China we can look at the physical stores rollout.”
He also confirmed that the group will look to transfer jobs from the closed stores to bigger outlets.
