200 jobs at risk as JD considers closing distribution centre

Around 200 jobs are at risk in Derby after sports retailer JD launched a consultation into the future of a major warehouse.

The 514,000 sq ft warehouse only opened three years ago, around the end of the second lockdown when last-mile logistics space was in high demand.

JD Sports signed a 20-year lease for the site at Derby Commercial Park but is now reviewing its future.

A JD Group spokesperson said: “We have entered into a period of consultation with colleagues based at our Derby distribution centre.

“This is in relation to a review of the Derby distribution centre. We are doing all we can to look after those colleagues impacted and recognise this may be an unsettling time for them.”

The consultation period is expected to finish on September 6. JD also operates a large distribution centre in Rochdale, which is close to the company’s head office in Bury, and is unaffected by the uncertainty at its East Midlands site.