Dutch retailer Jumbo is to close around a quarter of its La Place restaurant outlets, due to the impact of the coronavirus on its operations, according to reports.
De Telegraaf reported that the 480 employees of La Place will be notified about the planned closures later today.
Jumbo's chief financial officer Ton van Veen told the paper that there will be "no forced layoffs" at La Place adding that it will seek to position affected employees in other parts of the business.
"We will try to find a solution for all people," he said. "That means that we will do everything we can to relocate people. And let me say very clearly, there is no question that this is the end for La Place."
Site Closures
According to De Telegraaf, La Place outlets earmarked for closure include sites in Apeldoorn, Bergen op Zoom, Breda, Hazeldonk, Gouda, Holten, Nieuwegein, Leiderdorp and Zevenaar, among others.
Jumbo took over La Place in 2016, from the V&D department store chain, and has since sought to grow the business, as well as embedding it into its larger stores and Foodmarkt outlets.
© 2020 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine
