B&M to temporarily close 49 stores during lockdown

B&M has been considered as an essential retailer during the coronavirus pandemic, having over 650 stores across the UK.

It's not yet know which sites are affected by the announcement with the retailer said they will be the smaller outlets and those located close to other, larger, B&M stores.

Staff at the affected stores have been furloughed under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme.

B&M said it hopes to reopen the stores "as soon as normal shopping patterns resume" and they are reviewing the situation on an "on-going" basis.

A statement from B&M said: "We are grateful to our committed and hard-working colleagues for their remarkable effort and dedication in our stores and supply chain functions in helping customers at this very challenging time.

"The rest of our store estate in the UK continues to trade in line with Government guidance. The temporarily closed stores represent 3% and 2% of FY20 revenue and store contribution respectively.

"Colleagues at the affected stores in the UK have been furloughed under the Government's Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme."

B&M also said it has given a 10% rise in wages to staff "to reflect the additional workload that the guidelines impose".

The statement said that prior to the decision, B&M and Heron Foods had continued to trade following the guidance issued by the Government last week, adding that its first priority has been to "protect and support our customers and colleagues".

No Heron Foods stores will be affected by the move.

The news comes after Poundland announced on Monday that it was closing 100 stores partly due to a drop in footfall during the spread of Covid-19.