Shoe store chain Bristol wants to close all Dutch stores; 500 jobs at risk

The Belgian parent company of the shoe store chain Bristol wants to close a large number of its branches, including all 80 stores in the Netherlands, as part of a drastic rescue operation. Around 500 Dutch jobs are on the line, RTL Nieuws reports.

Bristol’s parent company, Euro Shoe Group, has been struggling financially for some time. Last year, the company had to keep stores closed due to staff shortages and disappointing results. Two months ago, it requested a suspension of payment and started working on a restructuring plan.

That restructuring plan is now ready but still needs to be approved by the Belgian court, according to RTL Nieuws. It involves 72 of the 115 Belgian stores making a restart under two different owners and the closure of all 80 Bristol stores in the Netherlands.

“They depend on the Belgian organization, which will go bankrupt and have no future on their own,” Euro Shoe Group general manager Elise Vanaudenhove told the Belgian newspaper De Tijd about the Dutch branches. “We are already closing stores, and people are leaving spontaneously. Of the 500 people who worked there until recently, 300 are still working.”

Euro Shoe Group was unavailable to comment to RTL Nieuws.

Trade union CNV is "shocked" by the looming closure of the Dutch stores. "Much is still unclear at the moment. But it does not look good," a spokesperson told ANP. "For employees, these are uncertain times. They don't know whether their salary will still be coming in, while fixed costs like rent and mortgage continue to be paid."