The Body Shop announced that 75 of its stores were at risk of closure following the news of its administration.
Now the skincare and perfume retailer is preparing to shut five locations imminently in another huge blow to the British high street.
It’s not the first wave of closures by the company, which has already axed seven Body Shop stores across London, Bristol and Warwickshire.
Almost 500 staff will lose their jobs as part of the closures, according to administrators at FRP Advisory.
Fans of the beauty brand, of which sustainability is a core value, could see their local branch go this week in the first round of closures.
The Body Shop will close a popular branch in the Isle of Wight on Wednesday, March 13. Located on Newport High Street, the store serves shoppers from across the island.
On the same day, the site in Bournemouth will also lock its doors for good. The Commercial Road location is in the heart of the town centre.
Customers have two more days to shop at the branch, which will be open between 10am and 5.30 pm on both Monday 11 and Tuesday, March 12.
On Wednesday, March 20, two more shops will close down as part of the “phased” approach to lose physical stores.
Shoppers in Stafford and Salisbury will bid farewell to their local Body Shop sites, marking the fourth and fifth branches to close down this month.
The wave of closures comes after the site in Blackburn closed down on March 6, and will be followed by even more. FRP Advisory revealed that the remaining branches currently at risk, of which there are more than 70, will slowly be phased out in the next four to six weeks.
Reduced footfall is to blame for the loss of brick-and-mortar sites, though the company is expected to focus more on online sales going forward.
