Laura Ashley, the British fashion and home retailer now owned by Malaysia's MUI Group, is set to shut down 40 of its UK-based stores in favor of expanding in China. According to the BBC, brick-and-mortar stores, particularly those located in the High Street, are seeing dwindling sales as fewer shoppers come to visit and the level of consumer confidence wanes.
The shut-downs are not strange in the UK. The same publication says that every day around 14 shops closed in the UK alone, citing the problematic trading climate. MUI executive chairman Andrew Khoo Boo Yeow earlier said in an interview that the next two years are expected to be tough on the retail industry, especially those with physical operations.
In a related report by Sky News, Laura Ashley reps assured that the impact of the closures on job losses will be minimal, mostly because the people will be transferred to the other stores that continue to operate and thrive. MUI is said to be bent on expanding and growing in China, where it has already begun connecting with the market--with the goal to open shops in the Asian giant after it succeeds in setting up its online base.
Testing the online success of a brand is anchored on market observations that more consumers are preferring to shop using their laptops and mobile devices, over heading to the mall or physical outlets themselves. With the tightening economic environment worldwide, going online seems to be the more practical and more affordable option for retails. Laura Ashley is not about to let go of its brick-and-mortar stores just yet, as there remains a market for it, but it cannot be denied that the buying public is gradually moving online.
Khoo said that the transition to Asia will be big, adding that it doesn't really matter if consumers buy in stores or online, as long as they continue to do so. As of this writing, MUI holds a regional office in Singapore that is focused on its e-commerce push in China. The rollout of physical stores will soon follow.
