ESPRIT To Shut 56 Stores Across Asia, Including S’pore & M’sia, By 30 Jun

ESPRIT To Shut All Stores In Asia Except Mainland China By 30 Jun After Suffering Worsening Sales

Apart from claiming thousands of lives, Covid-19 has been the demise of businesses around the world too. The latest to go is Hong Kong-based fashion giant ESPRIT.

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Struggling to cope with the Covid-19 pandemic, the group announced that they’ll be closing all stores in Asia, except for Mainland China, by 30 Jun.

ESPRIT closing 56 stores in Asia end June

According to South China Morning Post (SCMP), all 56 stores in Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau will be shut.

In an effort to overcome major challenges due to the coronavirus outbreak, the closures will reportedly help the group restructure their focus of resources and revise operations.

But at a hefty cost, evidently.

SCMP says the store closures will lose the group between S$27.5 million (HK$150 million) and S$36.6 million (HK$200 million) in one-off costs.

Focus on Europe markets instead

InsideRetail.asia reports that the decision to close comes after ESPRIT’s drastic drop in sales over the last 9 months.

Things took a turn for the worse from March onwards when Covid-19 eventually crippled communities and economies around the world.

But, this doesn’t mean the end of the journey for ESPRIT. They’ll continue to run wholesale and licensing businesses, as well as joint venture business, in Mainland China.

They are also setting their sights on Europe markets, and will focus instead.

Farewell for now, ESPRIT

Once a high-street brand, ESPRIT is well-loved for their vibrant, retro style of fashion. If your mum and aunt are fans, it’s probably best to break the sad news to them.

We do hope they’ll be able to make a comeback in Asia, after Covid-19 is over. For now, we wish them all the best in recovering from major financial losses.

Featured image adapted from ION Orchard.