Global retail brand H&M announced that it will be closing 250 stores worldwide next year due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
The company said that there has been an increasing trend for people to shop online instead of visiting stores physically.
H&M has 5,000 stores worldwide so the closure of 250 stores is tantamount to 5% of its store count.
“More and more customers started shopping online during the pandemic,” fH&M said in a statement on Thursday.
The company said that it has recovered its sales growth in the third quarter of the year, but also suffered a 5% decline in sales compared to 2019.
“Although the challenges are far from over, we believe that the worst is behind us and we are well placed to come out of the crisis stronger,” CEO Helena Helmersson said.
Online shopping has greatly affected the retail industry relying on physical stores and manpower which was further accelerated by the coronavirus pandemic.
Earlier in June, Zara has also announced that it will be closing 1,200 stores worldwide this year.
Photo: Mike Mozart @Flickr
