Edcon’s turnaround plan includes taking on about 2,000 new people
EDCON plans to increase its workforce by almost 7% and slash prices as SA’s largest clothing retailer kick-starts a recovery plan following the exit of US private equity firm Bain Capital Partners.The owner of the Edgars and Jet chains was seeking to lure customers back to its stores with more than 2,000 new staff specifically trained in the clothing ranges in their departments, CEO Bernie Brookes said in an interview on Wednesday. The move will help to undo the effect of job cuts made by Edcon as it struggled under a debt burden caused by Bain’s R25bn purchase in 2007."We must be the only value-added department store in the world where you self-serve shoes, when what you really want is somebody to come and try them, fit them, make sure they are the right size," Brookes said in an interview on Wednesday. "I expect by the time we finish we will end up putting 2,500 people back into the stores to provide good customer service."About a fifth of those could come from stores Edcon is clo...
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