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The American fashion retailer Gap has announced it will close all of its stores in the UK and Ireland and it will move to online only.
“The e-commerce business continues to grow and we want to meet our customers where they are shopping.
“We’re becoming a digital first business and we’re looking for a partner to help drive our online business.
“However, due to market dynamics in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, we shared with our team today that we are proposing to close all company-operated Gap Specialty and Gap Outlet stores in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland in a phased manner from the end of August through the end of September 2021.
“We are thoughtfully moving through the consultation process with our European team, and we will provide support and transition assistance for our colleagues as we look to wind down stores.”
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In the UK, the fashion giant will close a total of 81 stores.
This includes 19 stores that were already scheduled to close in July as their leases were about to expire.
The company has not yet said how many employees the closures will affect, but will start a consultation process with the staff soon.
In 2020, Gap’s UK sales fell by 9.5 percent to £195.1million, registering losses of £40.7million.
“We are not exiting the UK market. We will continue to run and operate our Gap e-commerce business in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland.”
This move comes after the collapse of the Debenhams and Arcadia empires in the UK during the pandemic.
Debenhams has continued online after being bought by retailer Boohoo for £55m.
Gap is now the latest retailer to shut its doors in the UK and move to online-only.
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