Pepco layoff plan won’t close stores in Alicante

Pepco, the “Polish Primark,” a Polish low-cost fashion and household goods brand, has implemented a redundancy plan that will result in the closure of 10 shops in Spain and affect a total of 209 workers, following the CCOO union’s efforts to negotiate and reduce the redundancy. This is a reduction from the number that the company’s management had previously authorised.

In 2021, Pepco established its inaugural store in Alicante. Since then, the company has expanded its presence in the province by 19 shops and the Valencian Community by 36 shops. What is the impact of this ERE on the province of Alicante? Union sources have confirmed that Pepco does not intend to close any stores in the province of Alicante. The partial layoff plan will affect five locations: La Nucía, Ociopía in Orihuela, L’Aljub in Elche, Almazora in Alcoy, and Rabasa in Alicante. Nevertheless, the precise number of layoffs remains unclear due to the ongoing voluntary redundancy period. The schedule comprises the following: a voluntary redundancy period until today, Wednesday July 30th, the publication of vacancies until August 2nd, the registration period for vacancies until August 5th, the closing of the application review period on August 6th, the notification of individual closure letters on August 7th, and the notification of individual “surplus” letters on August 8th.

According to the CCOO (Workers’ Commissions), the company’s management closed three stores in the country and reduced the workforce from 232 to the final 209 after a series of meetings and negotiations. This decreases the current 13 shops to 10. None of them are located in the province of Alicante.

Severance pay will be provided to employees who are impacted by the ERE for a period of 32 days, with a maximum of 20 monthly disbursements. The settlement for central services staff will contain the current bonus at the time of their contract termination, provided that the stipulated conditions are met. Staff members at stores that are closing will receive a permanence supplement.

Furthermore, the company has eliminated the food, perfumery, and drugstore categories from its Pepco Plus stores, which are now restricted to textiles and domestic products, since Jorge Gervasi assumed the role of Chief Operating Officer (COO) for Western Europe.

Pepco debuted its inaugural store in Spain and the Valencian Community in Alicante in 2021, as this outlet had previously reported. By September of that post-pandemic year, the objective was to establish ten points of sale in the region. Approximately one-third of the total openings were in the province of Alicante, where the chain continued to establish itself in Elche, Orihuela, Alcoy, La Nucía, Benidorm, Dénia, Ondara, Teulada, Calp, l’Alfàs del Pi, Finestrat, Elda, Novelda, San Vicente del Raspeig, Rojales, and Torrevieja.

In 2023, Pepco Group NV, the parent company of Pepco, initiated a renovation plan in Alicante. Dealz, which is also present in Spain and is known as Poundland in the UK, is also owned by Pepco Group NV. Pepco transformed the former Dealz stores in Spain, which it possessed, into its own stores, as this outlet reported. This strategy in Alicante was impeded by the overlapping networks of both brands, particularly in the Alicante capital and Benidorm. Ultimately, the logical course of action was to close one of the two establishments that were coexisting.

The group presently operates 4,948 stores in 20 countries throughout Europe, serving 57 million shoppers each month. However, it has begun to reduce its store count, particularly in Spain, and is in the process of selling the Poundland chain. The group’s vertically integrated fulfilment operation, PGS, has offices in South and East Asia, extending its influence beyond Europe.