Jewellery retailer Michael Hill International Ltd (ASX: MHJ) will wear the $6 million cost of its exodus from the U.S. market after failing to find a buyer for the business.
The exit will include lease exit terms and staff redundancies as the flailing retailer closes 9 US stores by the end of this month as a means to free up resources for better-performing portfolios such as Canada.
Michael Hill's US revenues slipped 17.7% for the 9 months to March 31 although group sales were up 4.9% while the company booked growth across Australia, New Zealand and Canada – albeit subdued.
Michael Hill has been struggling along for some time in the consistently volatile discretionary spending retail space, while sector darling Premier Investments Limited (ASX: PMV) has managed to log gains off the back of its Smiggle and Peter Alexander brands despite being down 0.6% at the time of writing to $15.75.
Share prices are down across the electronics space today too, with Harvey Norman Holdings Limited (ASX: HVN) down 1.6% to $3.34 and JB Hi-Fi Limited (ASX: JBH) also down 0.4% to $25.89.
