HanesBrands, Dick’s Sporting Goods and Ulta start furloughs due to coronavirus closures

By

Robin Driver

Published
Apr 9, 2020

As store closures related to the Covid-19 crisis drag on, the list of North American retailers announcing furloughs continues to grow, with the latest announcements coming from HanesBrands, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Ulta Beauty and Lightspeed.

 
Dick’s Sporting Goods
 
The sportswear and equipment retailer announced that it is furloughing “a significant number” of associates working in its stores, distribution centers and corporate offices. 

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Dick’s closed its more than 800 stores on March 17 and will pay associates affected by the furloughs through Saturday, April 11.
 
Previously, the company revealed that it is temporarily cutting the salaries of senior leadership and other executives and suspending the payment of retainer fees to its board of directors, as well as implementing reductions in capital expenditures.
 
HanesBrands
 
The Winston-Salem, North Carolina-based apparel company has temporarily furloughed its retail associates in the U.S., Europe and Australia after more than two weeks of closures at its approximately 1,200 stores in these regions.
 
Around 575 non-retail employees in the U.S. will also be furloughed, with temporary pay cuts of between 10% and 30% being instituted for remaining salaried employees and executives.
 
Discretionary spending and capital expenditures at the company, which owns the Hanes, Champion and Wonderbra brands, among others, have been reduced to a critical-needs basis, while inventory levels are being closely managed and the majority of production operations have been idled. 
 
Along with a consortium of its industry peers, HanesBrands has also transitioned manufacturing facilities to produce face masks for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
 
Lightspeed
 
The Montreal-based e-commerce platform Lightspeed announced on Wednesday that it has “moved decisively” to deal with the challenges presented by the ongoing coronavirus crisis. 
 
Initiatives implemented by the company include unspecified cost-containment measures, as well as customer-focused initiatives, including subscription discounts and deferred payment arrangements. 
 
According to a press release, Lightspeed is confident that it is well positioned to emerge from the coronavirus-related disruptions and highlighted that it “is well-capitalized with approximately US$220 million of cash as of March 31, 2020” and also has access to $25 million under its secured credit facility.
 
Ulta Beauty 
 
The cosmetics retailer has decided to temporarily furlough a number of its store and salon associates effective April 19. 
 
Ulta CEO Mary Dillon has also elected to indefinitely forgo her base salary and has made a personal donation of $500,000 to the Ulta Beauty Associate Relief Program, which has been run as part of the Ulta Beauty Charitable Foundation since 2017 and offers monetary grants for employees dealing with hardship.
 
The company’s distribution centers are still operating, and employees working in these locations are receiving a wage premium of $2 per hour. 
 
Additionally, Ulta has announced that it will be donating 450,000 medical grade gloves from its salons to hospitals around the United States.