Around 70 jobs are reportedly at risk at a Weymouth-based fashion firm. 

According to fashion business outlet Drapers, jobs at New Look's Weymouth and London head offices are at risk of redundancy.

The news has been described as a 'terrible shame' by one business leader. 

It is reported that New Look, which currently employs 1,200 people across the two offices, says the redundancies are part of a change to 'team structures', adding that its priority is to support those made redundant during a consultation period.

Upon hearing the news, Paul Appleby, president of the Weymouth & Portland Chamber of Commerce, said it is 'a terrible shame.'

"This will have an impact on the town, county and obviously on the individuals," he said. 

"There are so many big businesses restructuring at the moment but you hope these will be voluntary redundancies and, I understand, they are a good employer so I really hope they will give their employees a good head start in their next job."

A spokesperson for New Look told Drapers: "New Look has changed significantly in recent years, having accelerated our e-commerce-business and reduced our store estate. As such, we have reviewed our operating model and structures, and we are making certain changes to our ways of working, to better reflect and support the growth of our omnichannel business.

“As part of this, we are proposing changes to our team structures, which regrettably, we expect to impact some roles at our Weymouth and London support centres. We will shortly be entering a consultation period with affected colleagues and our priority is to support them during this time.”

New Look is one of the country's leading high-street fashion retailers. It began in 1969 when Tom Singh, from Upwey, Weymouth, opened his first shop in Taunton.

The retail chain began to grow, particularly during the 1990s, and in 1994 the distribution centre and head office opened in Mercery Road.

The Dorset Echo has contacted New Look for further comment.