Boohoo to close distribution centre near Rugby - putting hundreds of jobs at risk

The company entered into a consultation late last year
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Hundreds of jobs are at stake as Boohoo plans to shut down its warehouse near Rugby in an effort to streamline its distribution network.

The closure follows a £150 million investment in its Sheffield distribution centre and the opening of Boohoo’s US distribution centre in Pennsylvania last year.

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With this capacity expansion, Boohoo entered into a consultation late last year.

Hundreds of jobs are at stake as Boohoo plans to shut down its Daventry warehouse in an effort to streamline its distribution network.Hundreds of jobs are at stake as Boohoo plans to shut down its Daventry warehouse in an effort to streamline its distribution network.
Hundreds of jobs are at stake as Boohoo plans to shut down its Daventry warehouse in an effort to streamline its distribution network.

Currently, Boohoo retains three distribution centres in Sheffield, Burnley, and Pennsylvania.

The distribution centre near Rugby, located at the Daventry International Rail Freight Terminal (DIRFT) site near Kilsby, was opened in 2021 to manage the need for increased capacity following the acquisition of Debenhams and the former Arcadia brands, Burton, Wallis, and Dorothy Perkins.

A Boohoo Group spokesperson said: “For the past three years, our Daventry distribution centre has played an important role in Boohoo Group’s UK operation. We would like to thank our colleagues for their hard work during this time. As our business and customer needs evolve, the group has taken the difficult but necessary decision to close our Daventry operation and divert investment to other UK sites, in order to better serve our customers around the world.

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“We are working closely with all affected colleagues to ensure they are fully supported throughout this time.”

When Boohoo took over the former Arcadia warehouse in April 2021, owned by the developer investor Prologis, it was announced that 500 jobs would be secured immediately, including more than 300 Arcadia distribution staff transferring to Boohoo. The company also stated that up to 1,000 more jobs could be created as capacity increased.

Just a small fraction of the approximately 13,000 Arcadia workers were hired by Boohoo.

In 2021, the fashion retailer also set up a warehouse in Wellingborough to service its brands. Boohoo closed its Wellingborough distribution centre in February 2023, informing more than 400 workers that they would be able to apply for a similar role at its warehouse in Daventry or elsewhere.

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The company is organising a career fair for the employees impacted by the closure of Boohoo's warehouse near Rugby. The career fair is reportedly scheduled to take place before the closure. No specific dates were provided when this newspaper asked.

According to Boohoo, 12 organisations have already registered for the event.