Wickes is set to axe 100 jobs at its head office in Watford amid a cost-cutting drive as it faces “mixed” trading conditions.
The DIY retailer announced today that a third of the jobs at its headquarters will be cut, adding that it was “committed to fully supporting all those affected”.
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“In order to continue to drive growth for our business, we have been re-shaping our support centre to allow us to be leaner and more agile, and focus on key areas of growth in our multi-channel/digital businesses,” a spokesperson added.
“The new structure will result in the reduction of approximately 100 out of 7000 roles in the business.”
Last month its parent company Travis Perkins revealed that its consumer division, which includes retailer Wickes, saw like-for-like sales drop 4.6 per cent in the first three months of the year, alongside a total sales drop of 3.1 per cent.
However, the overall group including its plumbing and heating division and contracts arm saw like-for-like sales jump three per cent, while total sales increased a steady 2.4 per cent.
Its chief executive John Carter said at the time: “Whilst the mixed trading conditions in our markets are expected to continue in the near-term, we remain confident in the longer term outlook for the building materials market, with opportunities to grow and outperform through the investments we are making to develop or extend our strong customer propositions.”
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