Luxury jeweller Tiffany closed its shop in Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong, as the city’s retail sector was being battered by protests

Tiffany & Co, one of the world’s leading jewellers, has quietly closed its shop in Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, one of the most expensive shopping locations in Hong Kong.

The luxury jewellery retailer, founded in the US, said it shut its 4,000 square-foot store at 1881 Heritage, converted from the former Marine Marriage Police Headquarters, at the end of last year. It still has 11 shops in Hong Kong.

“The company did not renew the leasing contract after it expired,” said a spokesman for CK Asset Holdings, which owns the premises.

Tiffany joins a list of big names that have closed shops in Hong Kong in recent months. Retailers were first hit by months of violent anti-government protests, and are now struggling amid the Covid-19 outbreak that has infected more than 680 people and killed four in Hong Kong. On Sunday the government banned gatherings of more than four people to curb the spread of the virus.

Tiffany said in a statement on Tuesday that the closure was “part of the store network strategy surrounding the nearby expansion and relocation of the Tiffany & Co. flagship store at One Peking Road.”

It was not related to the coronavirus outbreak, which had only just started to emerge in mainland China at that time, the statement said.

The closure came as Hong Kong’s retail sales, battered by a steep drop in mainland tourists attributed to the coronavirus, plunged by 21.4 per cent year on year in January, with the government warning of dire repercussions to the overall economy.

Swiss luxury watch brand Omega reportedly closed four shops and laid off about 20 people, Longines has shut five stores, while Rado and Mido also closed outlets in mid March.