British supermarket group Ocado is planning significant redundancies as part of a renewed cost-cutting drive, according to reports. As many as 1,000 jobs could be at risk as the company seeks to recover from a difficult year.

According to the Times, it is understood that the majority of the cuts will be in the company’s UK-based head office, which could see several back office functions cut, including human resources, legal and technology roles. The company is set to report its annual results on February 26, but committed to shareholders last month that it would turn cashflow positive in the next financial year “underpinned by rigorous cost and capital discipline”. Founded in 2000, the Hertfordshire-based group sells automation technology allowing retailers to pick and dispatch online food orders from giant robotic warehouses.

It also runs a UK online grocery firm as a joint venture with Marks & Spencer.

Last year, it announced plans to axe 500 technology and finance roles as it reduced spending on research and development, having made 1,000 group-wide redundancies in 2023-24.

Ocado suffered a big drop in its share price late last year after Kroger, one of the biggest supermarket chains in the US, said it was shutting three Ocado-run warehouses that feature automation technology, and later that it was scrapping plans for a new site in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Ocado continues to operate five sites for Kroger and supports its logistics operations.

Tim Steiner, Ocado chief executive, insisted the Sobeys closure reflected a “pragmatic approach to refining the network”, and acknowledged parts of the market that had “not developed as anticipated”.

“Online grocery in North America has continued to develop and Ocado’s technology has evolved significantly since our first CFCs (customer fulfilment centres) were launched in the region,” he said.

“The changes we have made in our relationships with both Sobeys and Kroger represent a reset of our North American business, placing those partnerships in the best position to secure long-term growth, while reopening a substantial market for Ocado’s much evolved technology.”

An Ocado spokesperson told the Times: “We regularly review our operations to ensure we’re set up for long-term success.

“If and when decisions are made that affect our people, we are committed to communicating with them directly and ensuring they are supported throughout.”