New Look to slash costs

Struggling fashion firm New Look is preparing for “substantial” cost cuts are revealing heavy losses.

The high street chain has already earmarked £25million of cutbacks, partly from marketing.

But new executive chairman Alistair McGeorge said: “We have further substantial cost savings that we will be making.”

Reports say it could close 60 of its 600 stores through a Company Voluntary Arrangement. Another option could be to ask store landlords for rent reduction, but nothing has been decided.

New Look announced group sales dropped 6.3% to under £1.1billion in the nine months to December 23, with UK sales down 10.7%. It went from a £29m profit to a £123.5m loss after an unprecedented wave of discounting to get shot of unwanted stock. McGeorge admitted the chain lost its way by chasing younger shoppers at the expense of core customers. “The company went completely off piste and we need to get back on the slope,” he said.