Retailer Boohoo is considering closing its controversial Leicester factory and relocating its operations.
Boohoo said less than 100 employees at the Thurmaston Lane factory may be impacted by the closure and it expects that 鈥渟ome roles will be relocated鈥.
It comes just two months after a BBC investigation alleged Boohoo had broken promises to make its clothes fairly and was pressuring suppliers to drive prices down.
The clothing retailer said the plans to shut the site was not related to the findings of BBC鈥檚 Panorama investigation, adding that due to 鈥渟ignificant investments鈥 at its Sheffield and US distribution centres, it must now take steps to continue to ensure it is a 鈥渕ore efficient, productive and strengthened business鈥.
A spokesman for Boohoo said: 鈥淲e opened Thurmaston Lane in January 2022 to support the group in several ways, including manufacturing, printing and training.
鈥淎s in any retail business, the role of our sites continues to evolve over time and following significant investments at our Sheffield distribution centre and the opening of a new distribution centre in the US, we must now take steps to continue to ensure we are a more efficient, productive and strengthened business.
鈥淎ll these factors have led us to make the difficult decision to consider relocating some of the operations at Thurmaston Lane and consider the closure of the site in due course.
鈥淲e are now in a period of consultation and are working closely with all affected colleagues to ensure they are fully supported during this process.鈥
In November 2023, an investigation by BBC Panorama claimed that an undercover reporter working for the business found employees pressuring suppliers to reduce prices even after deals had been agreed and that Boohoo Group鈥檚 Leicester factory had been subcontracting orders to Morocco.
It comes around three years after the company overhauled its ethical practices after a supply chain scandal and allegations over factory staff pay and working conditions.
Boohoo said in November at the time of the Panorama investigation that it 鈥渉as not shied away from dealing with the problems of the past and we have invested significant time, effort and resource into driving positive change across every aspect of our business and supply chain鈥.
It added at the time: 鈥淲e have made a number of improvements, including strengthening the ethical and compliance obligations on those wishing to supply Boohoo, regularly publishing our full list of approved global manufacturers, responsibly exiting from relationships with suppliers where standards are found to have fallen short, supplementing audit processes with regular unannounced checks and more.鈥
