Major blow for Mayo town centre as popular retail outlet set to close
Staff of New Look fashion store, off Market Square, Castlebar, are reeling with the news this afternoon they are facing redundancy.
New Look Retailers Ireland Ltd. has announced it is pulling out of Ireland with the loss of 347 jobs around the country.
The company today sought the appointment of provisional liquidators as it sought to wind down its Irish operations following several years of sustained losses and challenging market conditions.
According to RTE News, the High Court today approved the appointment of Shane McCarthy and Cormac O'Connor of KPMG Ireland as Provisional Liquidators over the business and its assets.
New Look’s staff were notified immediately following this appointment and further staff engagement is planned over the coming days.
New Look employs a total of 347 staff across its 26-store network in the Republic of Ireland.
A majority of its stores are of small to medium size, employing an average of 12-13 staff per store.
A 30-day staff consultation process will commence over the coming days.
"Regrettably, a collective redundancy process, impacting all colleagues in the ROI is also envisaged," the company said in a statement.
"The decision to seek the appointment of liquidators was not taken lightly. New Look’s Irish operation has struggled for some years, impacted by a range of factors including supply-chain and in-market costs, and squeezed consumer spending," New Look said.
The company said that following a strategic review of the Irish business, New Look Group concluded it was no longer viable to continue trading in Ireland.
"The group will refocus investment on its UK business and its digital offering."
"Our Irish business has struggled for many years due to rising costs and squeezed consumer spending, despite our efforts to turnaround the performance," a spokesperson said.
"Our focus now is on supporting our colleagues through this process."
New Look stores are expected to close over the coming days before re-opening on February 23 for a clearance sale.
New Look first entered the Irish market in 2003 and operates a network of 26 stores across the Republic of Ireland.
It had six stores in Dublin, four in Cork, two in Galway, two in Wicklow as well as outlets in Carlow, Clonmel, Navan, Limerick, Dundalk, Newbridge, Kildare, Newbridge, Killarney, Dungarvan, Wexford, Mullingar, Letterkenny and Castlebar.