Pic: Johnson Service Group's
In UK textile services provider Johnson Service Group’s (JSG) workwear division, which serves both industrial and food processing customers, volumes have continued to increase with a 6 per cent year on year (YoY) reduction reported in August improving to a 2 per cent reduction at the end of September and being slightly ahead of pre-COVID levels by the end of October.
The latest lockdown in England is currently expected to have a limited impact on the division, according to an update on trading and management actions released recently by the company.
Ninty five per cent of customers who had advised that they were closed during the national lockdown earlier in the year had returned at varying levels of activity by the end of October, up from 91 per cent at the end of August.
The annualised year to date customer retention levels within workwear increased to 94 per cent at the end of October, compared to 93.8 per cent in July 2020, and customer satisfaction levels remained at circa 86 per cent in the third quarter.
Whilst workwear volumes overall have recovered to the levels seen in February, there is an expectation that the lower level of new sales signed during the national lockdown, the increased uncertainty for many of our industrial customers and the potential for further lockdowns, on either a regional or national basis, will restrict the division's ability to achieve organic revenue growth in the short term.
We have therefore been reviewing our resource levels along with our overall cost base in order to improve efficiency whilst continuing to deliver our high level of customer service.
As a result of the increased spare capacity the company has created at nearby workwear sites, it has announced the closure of its Newmarket site, which is one of its smaller workwear sites and the only mixed economy facility. Work is currently in the process of being transferred to neighbouring sites.
At the end of December 2019, the workwear division had 2,300 employees. Following the changes discussed above, along with the normal churn of employees, we anticipate starting 2021 with 2,100 employees operating from 16 processing sites across the United Kingdom.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)
In UK textile services provider Johnson Service Group's workwear division, which serves both industrial and food processing customers, volumes have continued to increase with a 6 per cent year on year reduction reported in August improving to a 2 per cent reduction at the end of September and being slightly ahead of pre-COVID levels by the end of October.