Major department store to cut 250 jobs

Department store chain Stockmann has announced it will be cutting up to 250 jobs from its stores in Latvia and Finland as part of reorganization.

The jobs will go over the period of two years as part of reorganization plans of its warehouse system,

Up to 200 people will be made redundant in Finland as "Stockmann" centralizes its operations at a new environmentally-certified distribution center in Tuusula, some 30 kilometers north of Helsinki.

The new system will replace some workers with machines. Although the automation technology provider has not yet been chosen, the company estimates that it will lower costs by about 6.5 million euros annually beginning in 2018.

The other fifty job cuts will be in Latvia. Distribution in the Baltic countries will be handled from Tuusula as of 2017.

Stockmann has nine department stores in Finland and the Baltic countries, as well as seven in Russia.