Coronavirus forces Flight Centre to close up to 100 stores

Australia’s retail woes have hit hard again, with travel chain Flight Centre announcing it will shut up to 100 stores in the wake of the Coronavirus outbreak.

The company has also scrapped its earnings guidance as it – and the world – comes to terms with the impact of the virus that is currently sweeping the world.

The company on Friday announced its stores – which also include brands Student Flights and Escape Travel – would shut before June 30.

Staff are reportedly set to be transferred to other stores in a bid to cut costs.

Flight Centre managing director Graham Turner said that with bookings plummeting, there was little option but to take immediate action.

“Given this uncertainty, the company has elected to suspend its revised FY20 guidance,” Flight Centre says in a statement.

Earlier this week reports emerged that the company had asked staff to reduce their hours from five days to four in order to reduce costs.

While it said there would be no immediate redundancies, other cost-saving measures announced by the company include reduced trading hours, encouraging time off, the removal of short-term bonuses for executives, and a recruitment freeze.

The moves come as thousands of Australians cancel their flights travel plans as global uncertainty around the spread of the virus continues