Stuttafords faces an uncertain future after it closed three of its nine department stores this week, and it is not clear how it will operate the rest of its business sustainably without further investment. The retailer has emerged from a round of aggressive promotions, leaving some stores nearly depleted of certain stock. The group did this to raise money to buy merchandise for winter. This week the stores in the Rosebank Mall in Johannesburg, Clearwater Mall in Roodepoort and Canal Walk in Cape Town were closed, and there could be more closures. Stuttafords also closed two of its 16 Bobbi Brown stores. Consumers seeking specialisation have increasingly migrated to buying online. The business placed itself in voluntary business rescue on October 28 last year, as the directors recognised they were unlikely to be able to repay debts when they fell due in the following six months. Some creditors have said the closures should have occurred sooner, as the business had been in a dire posi...
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