Long-standing mobile phone retailer Carphone Warehouse has announced that it will close all 531 of its standalone stores on Britain's high streets next month, with around 60 percent of staff (2,900) set to lose their jobs.

carphone warehouse
As part of the same company that owns Currys PC World, Carphone Warehouse has 350 mini-shops inside 305 of those stores, but these will not be affected by the changes.

The standalone stores will close on April 3. The move is not related to the coronavirus outbreak, but rather the result of the changing mobile market, according to the firm.

Group chief executive Alex Baldock told BBC News that customers were increasingly buying online and from its big stores, which sell computers and TVs as well as mobiles.

"They can't find all this in the small mobile-only stores that are one-twentieth of the size; they're visiting these less and these stores are losing more money as a result," he added.

The company says the closures represent around 8 percent of its current selling area, and the move is "an essential next step" towards making its mobile business a sustainable and profitable category.

"We have to take the difficult decisions to throw our weight behind the parts of the business that the customers are showing us they want... that's with the big stores and that's online."

Carphone Warehouse and Dixons Retail merged in 2017 to become Dixons Carphone, in a bid to fend off tough competition from internet players like Amazon. However, the online strategy has failed to pay dividends and the merged entity has lost £90 million a year as a result.

Almost 40 percent of staff (1,800) affected by the closures are expected to take new roles in the business, the firm said.

Top Rated Comments

CreatorCode Avatar
73 months ago
I have to give them credit, they lasted about two decades longer than a company still named "Carphone" had any right to.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Duncan-UK Avatar
73 months ago

I just saw the news coverage over in London. The UK is a mess right now
people standing outside the prime ministers office in full hazmat suits protesting. they are not closing bars and restaurants to limit the spread.

Face it . We are in a long recession

even the president said, Til July or August.

This is why I hope Apple keeps its prices LOW.

I still don't think the $6000 Mac Pro has a chance in a recession like this. But I'll buy one in a year when they cant sell at $3000 dollars.


https://www.yahoo.com/news/uk-abandoned-coronavirus-plan-realising-102650623.html
the UK may indeed be in a mess but at least we aren’t stocking up on guns and ammo!
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
justperry Avatar
73 months ago
Must be horrible to lose your job now in uncertain times.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
djcerla Avatar
73 months ago
This is why I hope Apple keeps its prices LOW.

I still don't think the $6000 Mac Pro has a chance in a recession like this. But I'll buy one in a year when they cant sell at $3000 dollars.
You seem to know very little about how Apple operate and how they price their products.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Moonjumper Avatar
73 months ago
Carphone Warehouse was always an unpleasant place to visit due to pressure selling, including insurance to go with the phone. The £29.1 million fine for insurance mis-selling could well be a contributing factor to these closures (not only the fine, also reduced insurance income). Their only reason for existence was good deals, but they are now easily undercut by the internet.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
oVerboost Avatar
73 months ago
Echoing the comment a few above, the experience from most Carphone Warehouse stores has never been that enjoyable. They try to push you towards certain phones, certain plans, try to push insurance, try to push tv and broadband packages but when you have a problem they don't want to know anymore.

Online companies like mobilephonesdirect and mobiles.co.uk are taking business away from them as they don't have to employ retail staff and can pass that saving onto the customer. Combined with companies like Apple offering the upgrade program so people are buying the devices as standalone purchases rather than bundled into a contract.

I won't be sorry to see them go (but it sucks if your losing your job obviously), and they'll still exist within Curry's retail stores and online which is probably the direction they should have gone a few years back. Also, the name is outdated and the whole "image" needed a big update which it never got (and probably never will).
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)

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