Dozens of jobs will be axed in Sussex after retailer Boots said it was ending a range of services, including laser eye correction and dentistry.

Chiropody and laser hair removal services will also close under the plan, which is part of an attempt to focus on the main operations of Boots The Chemists and Boots Opticians.

The company said it hoped to redeploy as many of the staff as possible but did not provide details.

Boots has dentists in Brighton, Crawley, Eastbourne, Horsham and Worthing and chiropody clinics in Crawley, Eastbourne, Horsham and Worthing. The group has laser hair removal services in Brighton and Crawley.

Boots said the loss-making services, which were set up in 1999 and 2000, had little prospect of making acceptable returns.

The closure would cost £55 million, including a one-off accounting charge on the value of the businesses, but it would help improve trading profits.

There are 54 Boots dental practices and most will be closed by the end of the year. The nine laser eye surgeries are expected to close by the end of the year. Those already undergoing treatment will be able to continue.

No date has been fixed for the closure of the 52 chiropody and 14 laser hair businesses but "alternative arrangements" will be made for patients.

The axed businesses occupy 15,000 square metres of space in stores, most of which will be converted into retail trading space during 2005/6.

In the last financial year, the dentistry, chiropody and laser hair removal businesses reported losses of £16.3 million while there was a deficit of £3.8 million for laser eye correction work.

Boots said it would have a better idea in October, when interim results were released, of how many jobs may be lost. It aims to make £100 million-worth of savings by early 2007.

Supermarket chains have been targeting traditional Boots custom by extending the services and products they offer.

In July, Boots said first-quarter sales at its chemist stores, which account for about 85 per cent of profits, grew 5.4 per cent, or 4.4 per cent on a like-for-like basis. It announced price cuts and extended opening hours to counter competition from the supermarkets.

Wednesday September 15, 2004