Estee Lauder cutting 2,000 jobs and closing up to 225 stores after coronavirus caused sales to collapse
Estee Lauder will axe 2,000 jobs and close up to 225 stores after the pandemic caused sales to collapse.
The cosmetics company has more than 25 high-end make-up and beauty brands, including Clinique, Jo Malone and MAC, and sells make-up in 150 countries.
Customers stuck at home have bought more skincare and hair products, but the closure of offices and postponed parties mean make-up and perfume brands have floundered.
Shifting focus: Estee Lauder has more than 25 high-end make-up and beauty brands, including Clinique, Jo Malone and MAC
Women have been forced to buy make-up online, forcing brands to rapidly shift their focus to internet sales.
Yesterday, announcing its fullyear results, Estee Lauder said it would make between 1,500 and 2,000 shop staff redundant, but declined to specify where the cuts would fall.
The group said that sales in the UK fell by more than a fifth in the six months to the end of June.
‘While gradual door re-openings began in mid-June 2020, retail traffic remained slow,’ the firm said.
Globally sales fell by a third to £1.8billion in the three months to June 30, the company said.