Huge shoe chain with 297 shops to close ‘unviable’ branches due to Budget tax hit
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A HUGE shoe chain with 297 shops has announced it will close several of its stores following a Budget tax hit. Shoe Zone confirmed the "unviable" branches will shutter in a trading update to investors this morning. The closures come after it experienced "challenging trading conditions" in the first two months of the financial year.
It said consumer confidence had weakened further following the October Budget when the Government announced it was hiking employer National Insurance Contributions (NICs) and with the National Living Wage set to be hiked next year. The retailer added: "These additional costs have resulted in the planned closure of a number of stores that have now become unviable.
"The combination of the above will have a significant impact on our full year figures.". The shoe chain did not say exactly how many branches will close in the trading update this morning. The Sun has approached the retailer to find out how many stores will shut and if job losses are expected as a result and we will update this story when we have heard back.
In the update to investors this morning the company said it expects its profit before tax for the financial year ending September 2025 to be around £5million, down from previous expectations of £10million. The retailer also said it would not be paying a dividend to shareholders for the financial year ending this September.
