Shop Direct has set out plans to close its standalone clearance operation, Littlewoods Clearance, which comprises a Bolton-based fulfilment centre, seven UK stores branded ‘The Outlet’, web sites including ‘Bargain Crazy’, and head office team.
Littlewoods Clearance sells unsold stock from Shop Direct’s retail brands, including Very.co.uk and Littlewoods.com.
Sam Perkins, group retail director at Shop Direct, said: “While it has been successful in clearing unsold stock for many years, our standalone operation Littlewoods Clearance is expensive to run and is losing money. Aware of this, and the need to continue our digital transformation, which has seen us remove the catalogue and consolidate brands in recent years, we reviewed alternative options for clearance.
“We found that selling unsold stock in bulk to third parties is the most efficient way to clear it. Simplifying our approach in this way will allow us to free up money to invest further in our digital future and focus on our core pureplay online business.
The of the 143 jobs affected by the proposed, 25 would go at the Croal fulfilment centre in Bolton along with 28 jobs at the company’s Bolton head office.
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