Popular make-up brand Morphe closes all of its standalone stores in the UK

It is understood that the make-up giant, which had stores in cities like London and Manchester, shuttered all seven of its locations on Wednesday (July 31).

The brand opened its first UK store all the way back in 2018 when it unveiled a location in Westfield Stratford.

Morphe criticised for ‘lack of communication’ over UK closures

Former employees and friends of workers have taken to social media to express their shock at the closures with many criticising the company for its apparent lack of notice and communication over the move.

One user, whose friend worked for Morphe, said: “My friend who works at Morphe has just let me know she’s been made redundant because they’re closing all UK stores with no notice. What’s happened to that store man.”

Another said: “I really hope those who got made redundant by morphe uk are able to find a new job as stress free as they can, redundancy is one of the worst things on earth.”

In a statement, the company said: “Forma Brands has made significant progress over the last year positioning our business for growth by focusing on our flagship Morphe brand largely through our wholesale and e-commerce operations.

“During that time, our owned Morphe stores in Europe, which have consistently provided an extraordinary experience for our customers, faced disproportionately high store rent obligations.

“We have therefore made the difficult decision to close our seven UK and one Amsterdam retail locations. This move aligns with our strategy to prioritize and expand our successful wholesale and e-commerce operations, similar to our model in the U.S. We also facilitated an ownership transition of our UK wholesale and e-commerce businesses, which will operate as FORMA BRANDS UK LTD., effective immediately.

Thanking the work of its employees, the brand added: “We are immensely grateful to our incredible store teams for their dedication and passion over the years and are working to support them through this transition. 

“Due to store closures, impacted store team members were made redundant immediately. In recognition of their dedication, the parent company Forma Brands LLC has provided goodwill payments to all affected employees, equivalent to an enhanced redundancy package.”

According to the Retail Gazette, the decision to close all seven of its UK stores comes after it shuttered locations in the United States in January of last year.

Shortly after the American closures, the firm’s parent company Forma Brands filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

In March of 2023, it was revealed that the company had reached an agreement with its lenders Jefferies Finance and Cerberus Capital Management to acquire it in exchange for $690 million in debt relief.

Morphe was once valued at over $2 billion but has since had a tumultuous few years due to reduced demand for colour cosmetics.

Before its decline, the firm grew rapidly thanks to partnerships with influencers like Jeffree Star and James Charles.