The Sun today (June 27) reported that the multiple is “set to close 300 shops across the country over the next year”.
Boots has not confirmed the locations of the 300 stores reported to close but it has indicated that they are branches that are near another.
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These closures will bring the multiple’s portfolio from approximately 2,200 branches to around 1,900.
A Boots spokesperson confirmed the plans to close 300 branches to C+D.
No impact to staff
According to the Sun, global chief financial officer at Boots parent company Walgreens Boots Alliance James Kehoe told analysts this afternoon that the multiple “will continue to optimise our locations and opening hours”.
The multiple “expects to close an additional 300 locations in the UK and 150 locations in the US", he said.
Boots told C+D that there will be no impact to pharmacy roles or other store roles, with full deployment opportunities for impacted team members.
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Announcing its quarterly financial results today, the multiple said that a “successful Boots transformation plan has created a strong and stable platform for growth and will accelerate further, including ongoing investment into the rejuvenation of the store estate”.
“In addition to uplifting existing stores, over the next year Boots will continue to consolidate a number of stores in close proximity to each other,” it added.
The update said that “evolving the store estate in this way allows Boots to concentrate its team members where they are needed and focus investment more acutely in individual stores with the ambition of consistently delivering an excellent and reliable service in a fresh and up to date environment”.
“Another strong quarter”
It added that the multiple “has delivered another strong quarter with retail sales growth of 13.4% for the three months ended May 31” compared to the same period last year.
This made it the “ninth consecutive quarter of market share growth”, it said.
Pharmacy sales were also up 5.7%, representing the best performance in six quarters, it added.
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“Sales were driven by a good start to hay fever season and over the counter medication, including the launch of new erectile dysfunction range, Eroxon, selling one every 30 seconds on the day of launch,” Boots said.
Digital sales rose 25.2% year on year, while Boots Online Doctor saw growth of 15% with sexual health and weight loss services among the most used, it added.
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