JD Sports chief executive Peter Cowgill has warned of potential job losses due to the restrictions placed on businesses by the Brexit deal.

Speaking to the BBC yesterday, Cowgill said the red tape and delays in shipping goods to the continent equated to “double-digit millions” in extra costs. 

As a result, Cowgill said it would “make a lot of sense” for the retailer to open a European distribution centre, which he said would employ 1,000 people. While he said that wouldn’t result in the closure of the retailer’s existing Rochdale centre, he warned “it would mean the transfer of jobs to Europe”. 

Cowgill said there is no true free trade with the EU, because goods that JD Sports imports from East Asia incur tariffs when they go to its stores across Europe.

He said: “I actually think it was not properly thought out. All the spin that was put on it about being free trade and free movement has not been the reality.

“The new system and red tape just slows down efficiency. The freedom of movement and obstacles are quite difficult at the moment. I don’t see that regulatory paperwork easing much in the short term.”

The JD Sports boss also called for the government to act to save the high street, saying that business rates and rents were making bricks-and-mortar retailing “uneconomic”. 

The Cabinet Office said in a statement: “We know that some businesses are facing challenges with specific aspects of our new trading relationship, and that’s why we are operating export helplines, running webinars with experts and offering businesses support via our network of 300 international trade advisers.

“We will ensure businesses get the support they need to trade effectively with Europe and to seize new opportunities as we strike trade deals with the world’s fastest growing markets and explore our newfound regulatory freedoms.”

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