French cosmetics firm Yves Rocher is closing all of its branches in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. With the corporate’s present enterprise mannequin, it’s not doable to function sustainably and efficiently. It is going to proceed working in these markets, however on-line solely.

Yves Rocher is French cosmetics firm with brick-and-mortar shops in Europe, in addition to localized on-line shops. In 2021, the corporate closed its seven shops within the Netherlands. Within the coming months, all shops within the DACH area may also shut.

350 jobs affected

No less than 140 branches and 350 jobs will probably be affected by the choice. Workers have been already knowledgeable concerning the closures in March this yr. Because the corona pandemic, Yves Rocher has handled financial issues.

‘Our clients can nonetheless discover our merchandise in our on-line store.’

“The previous two years have introduced us with monumental financial challenges”, mentioned a spokeswoman. Although the shops are closing, the corporate isn’t ending its actions in these markets. “Our clients can nonetheless discover our merchandise and organize them immediately in our on-line store.”

Chains closing shops in Germany

Yves Rocher isn’t the primary well-known chain to withdraw from German purchasing streets. Galeria-Karstadt-Kaufhof malls closed, in addition to shoe retailers Görtz and Reno. Vogue producer Gerry Weber can also be closing a big a part of its branches in Germany. These firms have been additionally declared bancrupt, which isn’t the case with Yves Rocher.

‘Yves Rocher isn’t the primary well-known chain to withdraw from German purchasing streets.’

The German Retail Affiliation (HDE) suspects that the excessive stage of inflation is a trigger for this growth. “Many retail firms are experiencing troublesome instances. First the pandemic with its lockdowns, retailer closures and measures that restricted the variety of clients, and now the implications of the Russian struggle in Ukraine with excessive inflation and poor shopper sentiment”, mentioned HDE CEO Stefan Genth.

9,000 retailers anticipated to shut

In accordance with the affiliation, it’s anticipated that round 9,000 retailers in Germany will shut this yr. Earlier than the pandemic, round 5,000 retailers closed every year. If the forecast is right, that may go away 311,000 shops nationwide. In 2015, there have been nonetheless nearly 373,000 shops.