TFG Store Closures Threaten Jobs, Raise Employment Law Concerns

Jobs at Foschini, Sportscene and Markham stores around the country are at risk, after The Foschini Group announced plans to close a further 180 stores over the next three financial years. Every store closure typically means job losses for the staff working there, though TFG has not said how many positions could be affected by this round of closures. The group has already closed 85 stores it described as no longer "economically viable" in just the past 21 weeks, while opening only 25 new ones, a net loss of 60 stores and the jobs that came with them. Keep up with the latest headlines on WhatsApp | LinkedIn More closures are on the way. TFG expects around 80 more stores to close during the 2027 financial year, with a further 100 store closures projected over the two years after that. The group says the closures are meant to cut costs and make its store network more efficient. Behind the store closures is a shift toward online shopping that's moving faster than in-store sales can keep up with. The group's total sales grew just 0.2% to R23 billion over the period, while online sales jumped 15.3%, now making up 15.9% of everything TFG sells. In Africa specifically, online sales surged 54.1%, driven largely by the group's Bash online shopping platform. That shift is exactly why physical stores, and the retail jobs inside them, are under pressure. As more shoppers buy online instead of walking into a mall or high street store, retailers like TFG are choosing to shrink their store networks rather than keep locations that aren't pulling their weight, leaving workers in those stores at risk each time a new round of closures is announced. Read the original article on Scrolla . AllAfrica publishes around 600 reports a day from more than 90 news organizations and over 500 other institutions and individuals , representing a diversity of positions on every topic. We publish news and views ranging from vigorous opponents of governments to government publications and spokespersons. Publishers named above each report are responsible for their own content, which AllAfrica does not have the legal right to edit or correct. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica . To address comments or complaints, please Contact us . AllAfrica is a voice of, by and about Africa - aggregating, producing and distributing 600 news and information items daily from over 90 African news organizations and our own reporters to an African and global public. We operate from Cape Town, Dakar, Abuja, Johannesburg, Nairobi and Washington DC. Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox By submitting above, you agree to our privacy policy . We need to confirm your email address. To complete the process, please follow the instructions in the email we just sent you. There was a problem processing your submission. Please try again later.