Footwear chain that owns Athlete’s Foot, Platypus and Hype to close 522 stores and stand down more than 5,000 staff as coronavirus downturn begins to bite
- Accent Group, which owns Athlete’s Foot, Platypus and Hype, to close stores
- Some 522 stores will be shut down and 5,000 staff will be stood down
- Employees will continue to accrue entitlements and may access their leave
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The Accent Group, which owns Athlete’s Foot, Platypus and Hype, has announced it is closing 522 stores and standing down around 5,000 staff.
The company will close all stores from 5pm on Friday for four weeks.
During the stand down period, employees will continue to accrue entitlements and may access their annual and long service leave entitlements.
People queue to enter Centrelink on March 24, 2020 in Melbourne, Australia
The Group will continue to trade through its 18 websites and wholesale business.
Accent Group CEO Daniel Agostinelli said: ‘It is with a heavy heart that we have made this decision, but we believe this to be in the best interests of the health and wellbeing of our team members.
‘The Company intends to do everything possible to return the business to normal operations when environmental conditions normalise whilst always prioritising the safety and wellbeing of our team’.
ALH pub group has stood down 8,000 workers and jeweller Michael Hill has told 2,500 people they no longer have a job.