Thomas Cook reassures staff after announcing more shop closures
Thomas Cook is to close 28 shops across the UK in a move which will affect almost 200 employees.
The travel giant said it had begun discussions with those members of staff who will be affected with the aim of offering them redeployment to alternative stores.
A company spokeswoman said: "We expect the vast majority to be redeployed."
Thomas Cook said the decision not to renew leases on 28 shops, which are a mix of Thomas Cook and Co-op stores, followed a regular review of its 793 stores across the UK.
Those that will close are in areas already well-served by other Thomas Cook shops, it said. The majority of the 28 will shut by the end of the year.
Following the review, Thomas Cook plans to open new expanded stores in ‘a number of leading retail locations’, it said.
At the same time, it will expand its refurbishment programme to inclue a further 50 stores in addition to the 50 that have been refurbished over the past year.
The refurbishment is designed ‘to make the shops lighter, fresher and more modern to create a better experience for customers’, it said.
The store network will be refocused into two key formats, Discovery Stores located in shopping centres and out of town retail parks, and Neighbourhood stores located primarily in high street locations.
The first new Discovery store will open at Westfield Stratford City shopping centre in East London in November. A further three are planned at other ‘prime locations’ by the new year, it said, bringing the total to 14.
A further 15 Discovery stores are expected to open over the next 12 to 18 months.
Kathryn Darbandi, Director of Retail and Customer Experience for Thomas Cook UK & Ireland said: "Our store colleagues play a major part in ensuring customer satisfaction and loyalty, never more evident than in the past year.
"As well as helping customers choose the right holiday, our store colleagues have worked tirelessly to assist them when challenging events have meant the need for last minute changes to their schedules.
"However, we know we cannot stand still so we are constantly working to improve the format of our stores as well as making sure we have the right stores in the right places to meet the changing demands of our millions of customers."
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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