Mosaic Brands will temporarily shutter all its retail locations effective Thursday 26, effecting 6,800 staff members.

The decision will be felt across Noni B, Millers, Rockmans, Rivers, Katies, Autograph, W.Lane, Crossroads, and Beme businesses.

In an announcement to shareholders on Wednesday, Mosaic said it had the health and well being of its customers, team, and the broader community at heart.

“The group’s personal service mandate, which it prides itself on, conflicts with the government’s ‘social distancing’ recommendations,” the business wrote.

However it also noted it had seen a significant drop in store traffic and revenue due to the community response to the spreading virus – with many individuals choosing to voluntarily isolate in order to ‘flatten the curve’.

As such, it will continue reviewing its cost of doing business with a view to reduce costs to match expected revenue.

Mosaic employees 6,800 team members will be stood down on Thursday with access to leave entitlements, and the group will review the government’s support schemes that may be available to help.

The nine affected brands will continue to trade online.

The move echoes that of jewellery retailer Michael Hill on Tuesday, which saw the business turn online as over 300 stores were shuttered internationally, putting workers across Australia, New Zealand and Canada out of work.