Clarks to stop UK manufacturing...again

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Jan 17, 2019

Shoe retailer Clarks has announced it may close its new robot-assisted manufacturing unit in Somerset, putting an estimated 80 jobs at risk of redundancy.

The company opened the factory in Street, Somerset in 2017, bringing manufacturing back to the UK after more than ten years of producing abroad.

Up to 300,000 pairs of boots a year were to be made at the factory, however the firm has just revealed that the targets were not met.

"Despite best efforts, we have determined that the levels of production and cost targets we hoped for will not be reached in the short to medium term," the company said in a statement on Thursday.

“We are therefore proposing to cease production and close the facility and will now enter a period of consultation into the viability of Morelight.

“We have a strong duty of care to all our employees and will ensure they are actively supported throughout the process,” it said.

In 2006, Clarks closed its last remaining manufacturing unit in the UK to shift its production to the Far East (Vietnam and Cambodia). It had been making shoes in the UK since 1825.