Mothercare Jersey has confirmed that the shop is due to close its doors for the last time on 30 June, affecting 13 staff.
Travel agent Thomas Cook has revealed that it is carrying out a consultation following a proposal to close its St Helier store, which has seven members of staff.
A spokesman for Mothercare said: ‘We will be emailing our customers in the local area to advise of the changes. We greatly value all our customers in the area and would like to thank them for their continued loyalty and support for Mothercare. While we regret the closure of the store, it is part of a larger transformation plan for our business. As part of the transformation strategy laid out in 2014, we are restructuring our UK store estate to meet our customers’ needs and continue adapting to evolving shopping habits around the world. Our stated strategy is to work towards our target of operating 80-100 stores and our store closure programme continues as we grow our digital capability, with 42 per cent of our trade now taken online.’
The statement confirms recent reports that trouble-hit Mothercare could be closing a third of its 143 stores in the UK in order to survive.
Eileen Blaby, manager of Mothercare Jersey, said: ‘It will be a real shame to lose the shop, as it is the only Mothercare in the Channel Islands and it’s the only place [in Jersey] where people can get everything they need, from clothes to buggies and furniture.’
At the time of going to print Mothercare was not able to confirm if after the closure it would begin delivering to Jersey addresses so that people could order products online.
More than 400 Islanders have so far signed an online petition launched by a member of the public on Change.org to save or relocate the store, with some mothers expressing concern that the high street will also be losing Mothercare’s in-store breastfeeding and baby-changing facility.
Supporters online included Sarah Le Neveu, who said: ‘Mothercare was a lifesaver when my boys were young. A place to feed them in times of need.’
Tamara Black said: ‘We need a baby-care and maternity-wear shop in Jersey.’ Stacey Meadows said: ‘Jersey needs a shop that provides child and baby clothes. There is nothing here.’
Meanwhile, Thomas Cook has revealed that it is carrying out a consultation exercise following a proposal to close its St Helier store. A spokesman for the company said: ‘At this stage, we can only confirm that seven colleagues in our St Helier store are impacted by a proposal to close it.’
They added that there was no set date for the consultation to end but that the company would send out a ‘full response’ when an outcome was reached.
