Cornwall fashion brand Seasalt has announced it is considering a raft of redundancies blaming increased tax burdens following the chancellor’s budget.
In a statement issued late this afternoon the company, whose head office is in Falmouth said the move was “in order to meet the challenges presented by an ever-changing retail industry.”
They said there were significant concerns about the outlook for trading conditions over the next year, including increased tax burdens following the budget, a continued decline in positive customer sentiment and rising inflation rates.
“As a business here at Seasalt, we are not immune to these very real concerns,” said the company statement.
“In order to meet the challenges presented by an ever-changing retail industry, the majority of those beyond our control, Seasalt must remain agile so that we can protect our business for the long-term.
“To continue investing in our growth plans, focusing predominantly on store and Partners expansion, and large-scale projects to enhance our operations, we have thoroughly reviewed our cost base, to ensure our expenditure is not outpacing our sales and equally achieve the growth that is essential to the viability of our business.
“This analysis has included looking at efficiencies and overall productivity, a transformation of our Head Office structure and a review of our Retail team operations, along with, where possible, reducing the expenditure necessary to realise our sales growth.
“As a result of the above, unfortunately, a number of roles will be placed at risk of redundancy across the business.
"We never take these incredibly difficult decisions lightly at Seasalt and give considerable thought to alternative options first. We will be offering our employees every support through the consultation process over the coming weeks.
“We have faced many unprecedented pressures over recent years and the measures that we take to mitigate these situations will always be in the best interests of securing the future of the business.”
Seasalt’s roots lie in Penzance in 1981, when Don Chadwick opened his first shop on Adelaide Street. It sold traditional workwear to local farmers, fishermen and artists and was known as General Clothing Stores.
Don’s sons – Neil, Leigh and David – decided to create a clothing brand and, with the help of a growing team, started to design their own collections and Seasalt was born. Since then it has grown to be one of Cornwall’s largest employers, with over 60 Seasalt shops around the UK and Ireland.
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