SPC Paris Croissant Implements Voluntary Retirement Due to Raw Material Cost Burden

Paris Baguette, Shake Shack, Pascucci, and 14 Other Brands
Targeting Employees with Over 15 Years of Service
"Management Efficiency... Reduction Scale Not Decided"

SPC Paris Croissant, which operates 14 dining brands including Paris Baguette, La Grillia, Shake Shack, and Pascucci, is implementing voluntary retirement.

A Paris Baguette store in Seoul.
[Photo by Paris Baguette]

According to SPC on the 14th, Paris Croissant began accepting voluntary retirement applications last week from employees with more than 15 years of service.

Paris Croissant explained, "Voluntary retirement is being offered only to employees who wish to participate in order to improve management efficiency and strengthen competitiveness," adding, "The specific scale of workforce reduction has not been determined."

The reason Paris Croissant is initiating voluntary retirement appears to be due to the increasingly difficult operating conditions caused by rising costs such as labor and raw materials.

In particular, Paris Baguette has seen steady increases in labor costs since directly employing bakers in 2018. Paris Baguette, which had previously employed bakers on a dispatch basis, was ruled by the Ministry of Employment and Labor in 2017 to have engaged in illegal dispatch. Subsequently, it established the subsidiary 'PB Partners' to directly employ bakers.

Additionally, various adverse factors such as industrial accidents and boycott movements are also believed to have negatively impacted the situation.

Paris Croissant's operating profit has been decreasing every year. Looking at Paris Croissant's performance over the past three years, sales have slightly increased each year, but operating profit has steadily declined from 34.7 billion KRW in 2020 to 33.4 billion KRW in 2021, and 18.8 billion KRW in 2022.

Meanwhile, voluntary retirees will receive up to 18 months' salary and one year of tuition support. In addition, education related to entrepreneurship, job change, or career transition will be provided. Support for store opening based on long-term service (according to welfare regulations) will also be offered.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.