Maisons du Monde announces plans to close or transfer 40 to 50 stores by 2026, out of a total of 340

Europe 1 with AFP 10:35 a.m., March 12, 2024

The distributor of furniture and decorative objects Maisons du Monde announced Tuesday in a press release that it wanted to carry out “40 to 50 store closures or transfers” by 2026, out of the 340 directly managed by the group.

The brand, which has also announced a net profit down 74% in 2023 compared to 2022, at 8.8 million euros, also wishes to pass "nearly 30% of the network under affiliation or franchise" here in 2026.

Maisons du Monde, which carries out 55% of its activity in France, saw its sales decrease by 9.3% in 2023, to 1.13 billion euros, "in a difficult context for the Homes and Decoration sector, accentuated by "unfavorable macroeconomic factors", according to the press release, which cited "geopolitical uncertainties", "unprecedented inflation" and "decline in consumer confidence".

In this context, the group has identified around fifty stores whose profitability needs to be improved.

Solutions to achieve this include renegotiating rents, selling to affiliates or moving, for example from the city center to a commercial activity area.

“Focus on simplification and financial discipline”

The definitive closure will only affect a "tiny" part of the park, assured AFP Christophe Lapotre, executive director of operations of the group, who is also considering other openings of points of sale.

While Maisons du Monde had already experienced a halving of its net profit in 2022, the distributor decided to place "an emphasis on simplification and financial discipline", according to François-Melchior de Polignac, general director of the brand, cited in the press release.

The group wants to achieve a total of 85 million euros in savings over three years.

To do this, in addition to store closures and transfers, it plans to reduce its stocks by one month and halve its number of suppliers.