(Bloomberg) --
British retailer Marks & Spencer Group Plc is closing 11 of its franchise stores in France after struggling to keep the shelves filled with fresh food following Brexit.
The “long and complex export processes” following Britain’s departure from the European Union have made it difficult to supply the stores from the U.K., the London-based company said Thursday. The stores, run with franchisee SFH, are set to close by the end of this year.
“M&S has a long history of serving customers in France and this is not a decision we or our partner SFH have taken lightly,” said Paul Friston, the company’s managing director for international business.
The nine M&S franchise stores run by Lagardere SA at French airports and train stations will remain open. The two companies are making progress on discussions over “a sustainable future business model,” M&S said.
This is the second time M&S has had to retreat from the French market and comes a decade after it announced its return, opening a number of stores including one on the Champs Elysees, Paris’s most famous shopping street. It has since shuttered that and other large outlets it operated independently.
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