New Look is poised to close down as much as 60 of its 600 UK stores as it continues to battle massive debts.
The fashion retailer’s finance director Richard Collyer has reportedly written to landlords to seek meetings to discuss possible store closures and rent reductions.
According to The Sunday Times, Collyer is set to visit landlords as early as this week.
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New Look is also understood to be considering a company voluntary arrangement (CVA), of which closing down stores is a part.
Previous reports indicated that the retailer could close up to 60 of its stores.
The fashion chain, owned by South African firm Brait, is in the middle of a turnaround plan after bringing back its former chairman Alistair McGeorge to revive the business in the wake of plunging sales and widening losses.
In its year-to-date performance for the 39 weeks to December 23, New Look’s overall group revenue dropped 6.3 per cent to £1.07 billion while group like-for-likes plummeted 10.6 per cent.
In the UK alone, like-for-like sales took a sharp drop of 10.7 per cent.
The retailer also recorded an adjusted EBITDA of £43.8 million, while underlying operating loss came in at £5.1 million and loss before tax was £123.5 million.
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