Victoria Beckham is to cut staff at her fashion label by nearly a fifth, a loss of around 20 jobs, as the impact of the corona virus pandemic continues to hit hard across all echelons of fashion and retail.
The redundancies are the latest upheaval in what has been a roller coaster season for Beckham. A decision to furlough 30 staff at the beginning of lock down met with a backlash against the proposed use of public funds by the pop star turned fashion designer, who has an estimated net worth of £335m. The decision was reversed two weeks later.
The jobs will come from production roles at Beckham’s dressmaking atelier in London. With consumer demand shrinking and supply chains under pressure, the brand plans to reduce the number of options per collection by 30%-40%, beginning with the spring 2021 collection, which Beckham is currently working on.
“It feels very relevant now to take things back to basics. It has fostered great energy and a real sense of creativity amongst the teams,” Beckham said.
A spokesperson added that the label had until March been on course to reach profitability by the end of this year, but the fall in demand meant that “in line with many other brands, we are now paring down what we do.”
Beckham is upbeat about the prospect of fashion week under social distancing rules. Her most recent show, in February, was staged beneath the grand Rubens-painted ceiling of Banqueting House in Whitehall to a celebrity-packed audience.
Victoria cuts staff at fashion label
