Good times.Photographer: ADRIAN DENNIS/AFP Andrea Felsted25 May 2022, 10:59 BST Britain’s retail stalwart emerged from Covid in excellent shape. Unfortunately, the good times are coming to an end. “Never the same again” was the name Marks & Spencer Group Plc gave to its effort to transform in the wake of Covid-19. But perhaps “Never had it so good”... Continue Reading →
Abercrombie & Fitch share price nosedived — CEO Fran Horowitz explains why and how she plans to turn it around
Abercrombie & Fitch shares plummeted on Tuesday after the company reported a shock loss and revealed its inventories had surged from a year ago. The company posted a net loss of $14.8 million for its first fiscal quarter — compared to net income of $42.7 million a year earlier. The net loss worked out as... Continue Reading →
The Very Group revives £4bn IPO plans
The Very Group called off an IPO last year due to stock market volatility // The Very Group owners, the Barclay family, is targeting floating the business in mid-2023 // The online retail group had been gearing up to an IPO last year but called off plans amid growing volatility over tech stock The Very Group... Continue Reading →
Retail CEO pay: which bosses get paid the most?
May 20, 2022 Retail CEO pay: Which bosses get paid the most? Executive pay has hit the headlines of late after it emerged that Tesco boss Ken Murphy was paid a whopping £4.74m last year. Murphy’s pay packet swelled due to a £3.21 million bonus – the highest yearly reward paid out by the supermarket since... Continue Reading →
South Africa retailer Pick n Pay to cut $187 million in costs in three years
JOHANNESBURG, May 17 (Reuters) - South African grocery and clothing retailer Pick n Pay (PIKJ.J) aims to cut costs by 3 billion rand ($187 million) in the next three years and grow its market share by 3% under a new strategy, CEO Pieter Boone said on Tuesday. One of the country's largest retail chains is seeking to... Continue Reading →
Google opens second retail store
By Tatiana Walk-Morris Courtesy of Google Dive Brief: Google on Wednesday announced it is opening a retail store in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, as the first of its upcoming neighborhood stores that pay homage to their surrounding communities, according to a press release. It is the company’s second store in New York City, following the opening of a flagship store in... Continue Reading →
RIL to submit bid for British medical retail chain Boots by month-end
Mukesh Ambani-owned Reliance IndustriesLtd plans to submit a bid for Boots UK, a British medical retail chain, by month-end in a transaction which would cost as much as $10 billion. The acquisition would be the first big ticket overseas investment by Reliance after the company made a string of acquisitions in the American shale gas industry. The... Continue Reading →
Boots US owner Walgreens takes £4bn dividend from UK empire as sales deadline nears
May 15, 2022 Suitors who have thrown their hat in the ring include private equity firms Apollo, TDR Capital and Sycamore. Boots’ American owner has withdrawn over $5.3 billion (£4.3 billion) of dividends from its UK holding companies, despite raking in hundreds of millions of pounds of government pandemic support cash.The high street chemist’s UK-based... Continue Reading →
India’s Reliance to acquire dozens of brands in $6.5 billion consumer goods play – sources
FILE PHOTO: Customers buy grocery items inside a superstore of Reliance Industries Ltd, in Mumbai By Abhirup Roy and Aditya Kalra MUMBAI (Reuters) - India's biggest retailer Reliance will acquire dozens of small grocery and non-food brands as it targets building its own $6.5 billion consumer goods business to challenge foreign giants like Unilever, two... Continue Reading →
Game launches new online store as it takes aim at delivery market in South Africa
Massmart-owned retailer Game has launched a new online store which it says forms the next step in its turnaround strategy. The store has been supported by an investment from Massmart and a dedicated support team in Walmart’s global tech hub in Bangalore, India, the group said. Game said the new website is equipped with new features, functionalities,... Continue Reading →
Made.com acquires online marketplace Trouva
Made.com has acquired online platform Trouva in an effort to grow its marketplace business. Trouva’s is a sales platform for independent boutiques and brands, and provides customers with a curated range of homewares, lifestyle and fashion products. The marketplace will continue to operate as a standalone brand led by the current leadership team of chief... Continue Reading →
Morrisons buys McColl’s, beating Asda owner EG Group
Morrisons buys McColl's beating Asda owners EG Group Morrisons is to snap up McColl’s after winning a battle against Asda owner EG Group to gain control of the convenience chain. The Bradford-based grocer emerged victorious with a bid that will preserve all 1,100 McColl’s stores and 16,000 staff, according to Sky News. An improved offer that... Continue Reading →
Landlords with high street shops empty for over a year will be forced to rent them out under new plans
Shoppers walk past a shuttered high street shop in Halifax(Photo: Daniel Harvey Gonzalez/In Pictures via Getty) High street landlords who allow shops to lie empty for more than a year will be forced to rent them out under government plans to revive town centres. New legislation in the Queen’s Speech next week will also allow pubs... Continue Reading →
McColl’s convenience store chain on brink of collapse
Convenience store chain McColl's is on the brink of collapse, placing thousands of UK jobs at risk. The retailer said it was "increasingly likely" it would fall into administration unless talks around a rescue deal were successful. It said that discussions about securing the future of the business are ongoing. More than 16,000 people are... Continue Reading →
Clicks retail sales rise as it grows market share
PHARMACY, health and beauty retailer Clicks said yesterday that its interim retail sales increased 13.6 percent, bolstered by market share gain and a robust expansion of its stores and pharmacy network. The company said its clubcard membership grew and accounted for 81 percent of the group’s sales in the six months. In an interview, Clicks... Continue Reading →
Apple’s Second Retail Store Is Unionizing
This is the third US Apple Retail store to seek unionization. An Apple retail store located in the Towson Town Center Mall in Maryland announced today that it has filed for a union election. In a press release, International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW) organizer Dave DiMaria announced that the employees at the Maryland-based... Continue Reading →
Next first quarter sales jump as it maintains profit guidance
Next first quarter sales up as it remains on track to deliver profits rise Next has maintained its profit guidance for the year after its sales jumped 21.3% in its first quarter. The retailer said this was in line with expectations and is still on track for pre-tax profit to hit £850 million for the year,... Continue Reading →
J.C. Penney is reinventing itself. Again.
Daphne Howland/Retail Dive If there’s one thing that’s become predictable at J.C. Penney in the last decade or so, it’s constant change. The company has had five chief executives in that time, each with their own ideas about how to turn over its steadily declining fortunes. That included efforts like restoring and then again ending appliance sales,... Continue Reading →
Asda criticises government for being too slow to react to inflation
Asda chairman Lord Stuart Rose has criticised the Bank of England and ministers for being too slow to react to the inflation crisis. Rose also said politicians should intervene over high food prices, warning that they could remain elevated for “quite some time”. “I think the government and the Bank of England have been slow to... Continue Reading →
Lidl names 11 North Wales towns where it wants to build new stores
A Lidl store (Image: Derby Telegraph) The German supermarket plans further expansion in the region over the coming years Lidl has named 11 North Wales towns where it wants to build new stores. The German brand published the latest list and also launched a reward scheme for anyone suggesting a site that comes to fruition. In... Continue Reading →
In pictures: Deichmann’s new UK warehouse
Footwear retailer Deichmann has opened its new 165,000 sq ft warehouse in Corby, Northamptonshire. The £3m Deichmann warehouse will create 50 new jobs in the area and supports Deichmann’s ongoing growth, further improving service levels across the business, it said. Corby was chosen as the site for the brand’s new UK distribution facility as a... Continue Reading →
Meta to open first physical retail shop for virtual reality products
Social media brand Meta, formerly the Facebook Company, is opening its first permanent Meta Store for customers to purchase its virtual reality products as a "gateway to the metaverse". The 1,550-square-foot shop will open on 9 May in Burlingame, California, near the company's Reality Labs campus – a research and development hub for virtual reality products. Meta Store is the social... Continue Reading →
Reliance and Apollo plan joint bid for Walgreens’ Boots business
Boots operates 2,200 stores in the UK, including pharmacies, health and beauty stores. India’s largest listed company Reliance Industries and US buyout firm Apollo Global Management, are planning a joint bid for the UK health and beauty retailer Boots, a spokesperson for Apollo confirmed. If their bid for Boots is successful, both Reliance and Apollo would own... Continue Reading →
Meta is opening its first retail store next month
Meta is launching its first hardware retail store on its campus in Burlingame, California. The store, which opens May 9th, will let visitors try out and buy Meta’s Portal videophones and Quest virtual reality headsets. They’ll also be able to demo the Ray-Ban Stories smart glasses that debuted last year and get help ordering them online. Meta’s store... Continue Reading →
Primark raises prices as its unable to offset rising inflation
Primark will raise prices on selected items Primark will be forced to raise prices in its second half as it is unable to offset rising costs. The fashion giant had managed to keep prices static in spring/summer, however, it admitted it will “implement selective price increases” across its autumn/winter stock. However, George Weston, chief executive of Primark... Continue Reading →
Reliance calls off $3.4 billion retail deal with India’s Future Group
Aditya KalraApril 23, 20221:35 PM GMT+1Last Updated a day ago MUMBAI, April 23 (Reuters) - India's top retailer Reliance (RELI.NS) on Saturday called off its $3.4 billion deal with Future Group, saying it "cannot be implemented" after Future's secured creditors rejected it. The deal was at the centre of legal battles since 2020 after Future's partner Amazon.com... Continue Reading →
South African retailer Mr Price acquires 70% of Studio 88 Group
South African value fashion and homeware retailer Mr Price recently announced acquiring 70 per cent of the ownership of the Studio 88 Group, which includes the SideStep, John Craig, Skipper Bar brands, for 3.3 billion rand (R). The partnership gives Mr Price “an ideal entry into the high-growth urban wear and athleisure segments”, and presents... Continue Reading →
Banana Republic to close UK website
Banana Republic has announced it is closing its UK website on the 31 May. Banana Republic had nine stores across the UK, but made the decision to close them all in 2016 due to falling sales. While its high street presence ended, Banana Republic continued to be available online via its own website in the UK.... Continue Reading →
Retailers that have gone online-only
Going online-only is a big risk retailers have been willing to take after the Covid-19 pandemic presented a set of challenges. While some retailers decided to accelerate their online offerings via click-and-collect and rapid home deliveries, others saw their business collapse. TM Lewin recently secured a rescue deal and will be relaunching as an online brandbut... Continue Reading →
Walgreens set to lose billions on Boots sale
Boots trades from more than 2000 stores and employs over 50,000 people // Walgreens risks shedding billions after the one-time favourite to purchase Boots valued the retailer at a steep low cost The American owner of Boots could risk losing billions after the chemist and health and beauty retailer was valued at a steep discount. Walgreens has... Continue Reading →
Gymshark restructures international business, 121 jobs at risk
Gymshark is set to make redundancies in its international business Gymshark is set to make redundancies as part of a restructure of its international business, with 121 jobs at risk. The roles on the line are global and are subject to a consultation process, which will take place before the end of Gymshark’s financial year... Continue Reading →
Morrisons owners will sell petrol stations to force through £7bn takeover
Morrisons private equity buyers have agreed to sell a number of petrol stations to accelerate the £7 billion takeover. Clayton, Dubilier and Rice, which also owns forecourt operator Motor Fuel Group (MFG), won over control of the Big Four grocer in October. However, the Competition and Markets Authority launched an investigation because MFG owns 921... Continue Reading →
The Works forced to close some stores after cyber-attack
UK retailer says security breach has not given hackers access to customer payment data A cyber-attack targeting The Works has caused the closure of some of the retailer’s stores, delayed the resupply of stock and online order deliveries to customers. The cut-price seller of books, crafts and toys, which operates 520 stores across the UK,... Continue Reading →
Next opens first department store
Next opened its first department store in Watford this week // Next opens new department store in Watford that brings together its fashion, home and beauty offer for the first time // The store spreads across three floors and is more than 94,000 sq ft Next has opened a new department store which combines the brand’s home,... Continue Reading →
IKEA UK to close Tottenham store, 450 jobs impacted
LONDON, March 30 (Reuters) - Home furnishings retailer IKEA said on Wednesday it planned to close its store in Tottenham, north London later this year, impacting 450 workers. IKEA said it was committed to retaining as many affected workers as possible, noting it would create over 600 other jobs across the capital before the store... Continue Reading →
Clicks sets goal to have 900 stores in South Africa by 2026
Bertina Engelbrecht, Clicks Group CEO (centre) at the opening of Clicks 800th store at Somerset Crossing Shopping Centre with (left to right) Vikash Singh (Clicks managing executive), Gift Jeffrey (Clicks area manager), Dhevan Pillay (Clicks chief store operations officer) and Musa Mkhwanazi (Clicks regional manager). Photo credit: Jaco Cilliers Photography. This rate of store expansion... Continue Reading →
Timpson sheds over 800 jobs as profits surge amid “traumatic transformation”
“In October 2020, sales were starting to recover to pre-pandemic levels, when we were affected by further lockdowns," More than 800 jobs were shed by Timpson during its latest financial year after a “traumatic transformation” led to surging back into the black. The family-owned group founded in 1865, posted pre-tax profits of £24.5m for the 12... Continue Reading →
H&M to open first UK outlet store
H&M will open its first UK outlet store this spring H&M will open its first outlet store in the UK at the Affinity centre, Staffordshire this spring. The fashion retailer will open a 7,000 sq ft store at Affinity Staffordshire, which will have “a lower volume of products which will be displayed in an inspirational way”.... Continue Reading →
M&S to open Early Learning Centre ‘shop-in-shops’ in ten UK locations
The dedicated shops will offer best-selling toys and interactive play tables. M&S is launching Early Learning Centre ‘shop in shops’ in ten UK locations. Credit: © Marks and Spencer plc. British multinational retailer Marks & Spencer (M&S) has revealed plans to pilot Early Learning Centre ‘shop in shops’ in selected stores in the UK. The Early Learning... Continue Reading →
Gap re-enters the UK market less than a year after closing all of its stores
Anne Stych, Staff Writer, BizwomenMar 15, 2022, 10:29am EDT Gap has re-entered the British market via a partnership with the United Kingdom’s largest clothing retailer less than a year after closing all of its UK stores. Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS) and Next Plc announced they have opened the first Gap-branded shop-in-shop within Next’s largest store in London's... Continue Reading →
Nearly 20% of all LEGO stores were opened in 2021
The LEGO Group’s financial results for 2021 have revealed that nearly 20% of all LEGOstores around the world opened in 2021 alone. Anyone who thought that 2021 seemed like a busy year for LEGO store openings wasn’t crazy as the 2021 financial results for the company has revealed that just under 20%, specifically 19.8%, of all LEGO branded stores globally were... Continue Reading →
A futuristic McDonald’s in Australia is on the cutting edge of experiential retail
Trevor Mein To keep consumers engaged, more store designers are pushing the “wow” button. Everyone’s seen more McDonald’s than they can remember. But there’s one McDonald’s that, once they see it, they never forget. It’s in Sydney Airport’s Terminal 1, and it wasn’t conceived, at least not initially, to stop passengers and their Samsonites in their... Continue Reading →
Ted Baker signs new UK franchise agreement
Ted Baker has signed a new UK agreement with franchise company Aldrich Group. Under the new agreement, Aldrich Group plans to open a minimum of 30 stores across the UK for Ted Baker over the next ten years. Helen Costello, Ted Baker group commercial and business development director said of the partnership: "[Aldrich Group’s] experience... Continue Reading →
M&S appoints joint CEOs as Steve Rowe stands down
M&S hires co-chief executives // M&S has promoted Stuart Machin to chief executive and made Katie Bickerstaffe his co-chief executives as current boss Steve Rowe steps down // Machin will carry out the “day-to-day leadership” of M&S and with carry on leading food, operations, property, stores and technology, whilst Bickerstaffe will lead omnichannel, digital and data,... Continue Reading →
Asda’s billionaire Issa brothers race to overtake Sainsbury’s
The supermarket’s owners reveal ambitious plans to take on their rival in their first interview since buying the chain More than 3,000 Asda store managers and head-office staff descended on the First Direct Arena in Leeds last Wednesday morning for a long-awaited briefing. They tucked into a buffet of bacon and sausage sandwiches and then... Continue Reading →
South Africa’s Woolworths Sees H1 Profit Drop, Resumes Dividend
Woolworths Holdings has resumed its interim dividend despite reporting a 35.6% slump in half-year profit, as the South African retailer was badly affected by civil unrest at home and extended coronavirus lockdowns in Australia. The retailer also forecast annual turnover of 15 billion-16 billion rand (€930 million billion) by its 2024 financial year, up from... Continue Reading →
Alshaya brings unique shopping experiences to Dubai Hills Mall
Alshaya Group, a global brand franchise operator, is set to help make Dubai Hills Mall the hottest new shopping destination in Dubai. Visitors to the mall, which opened recently, will discover an exciting range of family, fashion, health and beauty, and dining experiences, expertly curated by Alshaya to reflect the tranquil and modern surroundings of... Continue Reading →
TK Maxx to sell 25% stake in Russian apparel retailer Familia
The company said it expects to take an impairment charge due to the sale. TJX Companies, the parent company of discount lifestyle retailer TK Maxx, has announced it would sell its 25% stake in the Russian value retailer Familia following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. The group has also committed to stop sourcing goods from Russia and Belarus.... Continue Reading →
Amazon closing 68 physical stores in U.S., U.K.
Amazon is trimming back its physical footprint by eliminating a couple of its brick-and-mortar banners. The company plans to close 68 brick-and-mortar stores, including its Amazon Books locations and Amazon 4-star locations, along with Amazon Pop Up sites. The news was first reported by Reuters. The closure dates, which are unspecified, will vary. "We’ve decided to close our Amazon... Continue Reading →