Luxury companies including Kering SA are demanding lower Hong Kong store rents to reflect the island city's waning appeal with wealthy Chinese shoppers. The owner of the Gucci brand may close some of its shops there if those costs don't come down, Kering Chief Financial Officer Jean-Marc Duplaix said late on Monday. UK trenchcoat maker... Continue Reading →
The Sultan Center brings Waitrose UK Retailer Products to Jordan
The Sultan Center brings Waitrose UK Retailer Products to Jordan The Sultan Center brings Waitrose UK Retailer Products to Jordan Kuwait - Being the premier retailer and one of the largest retailers across the Gulf and Middle East, The Sultan Center has been working closely with UK retailer Waitrose as an exclusive distributor for Waitrose... Continue Reading →
Morrisons hires former Tesco executive Gary Mills as group retail director
Morrisons has appointed former Tesco executive Gary Mills as group retail director as new boss David Potts continues to reshape his senior team. Morrisons hires former Tesco executive Gary Mills as group retail director Mills, who was formerly in charge of Tesco’s Northern Ireland business, will take up the position on August 1. He replaces... Continue Reading →
John Lewis to launch new in store spa concept
John Lewis is to launch a brand new in store beauty spa concept called &Beauty. To be launched at the retailer’s new multi-million pound Birmingham shop when it opens on 24 September, the new John Lewis branded venture will provide a range of salon services and spa treatments. Customers will be offered a choice of... Continue Reading →
Marks & Spencer triggers local anger after confirming store closures
Marks & Spencer has sparked uproar in local communities by confirming it will close nine shops across the UK, putting hundreds of jobs at risk. The closures include stores in Birmingham, London and Wales and are a result of M&S attempting to modernise its store estate as shoppers switch their spending online. On Wednesday, the... Continue Reading →
Sainsbury’s sells pharmacy business to rival LloydsPharmacy
Sainsbury's has sold its chain of pharmacies to the owner of LloydsPharmacy for £125m. Celesio, the German drugs wholesaler that owns LloydsPharmacy in the UK, said that it would buy 281 pharmacies in total from the supermarket group. This includes 277 in-store pharmacies and four Sainsbury's-branded hospital pharmacies. The grocer said that all of... Continue Reading →
Pick n Pay plans new stores and jobs
PICK n Pay plans to employ 5,000 people a year as it opens new stores in Africa’s most advanced economy, the retailer said on Monday. Pick n Pay, which opened about 100 grocery stores last year despite subdued retail sales and gross domestic product growth of 2%, is aiming for "a bit more this year",... Continue Reading →
Tesco shelves 62 planned stores in UK
Tesco will not proceed with the development of 62 planned stores in the UK in order to cut down on costs. The move comes after the retailer posted £6.38bn in losses last year. According to figures compliled by Barbour ABI exclusively for The Telegraph, the number of stores being slammed is three times as many... Continue Reading →
Virgin Megastore opens first outlet in Al Ain
Virgin Megastore, a global leader in retail entertainment, has opened its first store in Al Ain at Al Jimi Mall, a leading shopping and leisure destination. The 400-sq-m location offers a wide array of merchandise, the same large selection available at most of the retailing chain’s other locations in the country. The first Virgin Megastore... Continue Reading →
Gucci opens in Shanghai its very first restaurant
After the cafe at its museum in Florence, the cafe / lounge at its flagship store in Seoul and the bar at its men’s store in Milan (Brera District) Italian luxury brand Gucci has recently opened in Shanghai its first restaurant. The Shanghai restaurant that opened this week is named 1921 for the year the... Continue Reading →
Lucy Choi to launch first UK store
Shoe designer Lucy Choi has chosen London’s Connaught Street as the location for her first standalone boutique. Situated in the retail and restaurant quarter of the Church Commissioners’ Hyde Park Estate, the store was once occupied by her uncle, the world famous shoe designer Jimmy Choo. Choi said the store will meet increasing demand from... Continue Reading →
Hackett unveils Bluewater store
Hackett London has launched a store at Bluewater shopping centre. The store marks Hackett's debut in the south east and is only the second standalone store outside London. The store is situated on the lower Guildhall, adjacent to House of Fraser, Russell & Bromley, Jack Wills and Tommy Hilfiger. The design concept sees the brand... Continue Reading →
Amazon shares surge on surprise quarterly profit
Online giant Amazon's shares have closed 9.8% higher after it posted an unexpected profit on Thursday. The online retailer reported a $92m profit for the three months to 30 June, surprising investors who had expected another loss. Sales rose by 20% to almost $23.2bn. The results sent shares in Amazon up 9.8% to $529.42, making... Continue Reading →
Hackett unveils Bluewater store
Hackett London has launched a store at Bluewater shopping centre. The store marks Hackett's debut in the south east and is only the second standalone store outside London. The store is situated on the lower Guildhall, adjacent to House of Fraser, Russell & Bromley, Jack Wills and Tommy Hilfiger. The design concept sees the brand... Continue Reading →
Sunday trading review continues the Government’s devolution drive
Sunday trading review continues the Government’s devolution drive In his Emergency Budget this month, Chancellor George Osborne announced a consultation on the expansion of the Sunday trading laws, in what the Treasury has called “the biggest shake-up of Sunday trading laws since the 1990s”... By Gavin Matthews, head of retail at Bond Dickinson. Under current... Continue Reading →
AmazonFresh Expands to the U.K.
While several U.S. cities have yet to reap the benefits of AmazonFresh, several reports are indicating the grocery delivery service will begin expanding overseas to the U.K. as early as September of this year. The Times of London reports that plans for AmazonFresh are in an “advanced stage.” Re/code reports that upon entering the U.K.,... Continue Reading →
Superdrug to launch its online delivery service in Ireland
Superdrug is poised to launch international shipping from its ecommerce platform, with Ireland the first country set to benefit from the service. Superdrug to launch its online delivery service in Ireland From next Wednesday customers in Ireland will be able to shop online at Superdrug.com and place orders to be delivered directly to their... Continue Reading →
Woolworths to offload two David Jones sites to invest elsewhere
Almost a year after outlaying AUD2.1 billion (USD1.56b) for David Jones, South African retailer Woolworths is preparing to sell two of its landmark central business district stores to fund hundreds of millions of dollars of investment in IT systems, stores and new food venues – reversing years of underinvestment at Australia's oldest department store. Woolworths... Continue Reading →
Harvey Nichols drops Azerbaijan store after split with business partner
Harvey Nichols has pulled out of its first store in Azerbaijan just four months after opening in the oil-rich state widely criticised for human rights abuses. The seven-floor store in Baku’s Globus Plaza no longer runs under the upmarket department store’s name after a split with licence partner Perfomans, part of a local investment company.... Continue Reading →
Ben Sherman bought for £40.8m
In its latest ownership change, ailing retailer Ben Sherman has been acquired by US private equity backed Marquee Brands for the sum of £40.8m. Marquee Brands insists that the loss-making men’s fashion business has potential. “We are particularly excited about this transaction as Ben Sherman is consistent with our mission to acquire high quality brands... Continue Reading →
UAE named world’s eighth best retail destination
UAE named world's eighth best retail destination The UAE has been ranked the eighth best retail market in the world and the number one in the Middle East in a new index produced by Arcadis. The Retail Operation Index said retailers in the UAE benefit from a strong quality of infrastructure and a robust economic... Continue Reading →
Superdrug offers discounts as part of ‘Loved By You’ campaign
Superdrug is offering discounts on some of its most popular products for the next two weeks after asking customers to vote for their favourite brands. Superdrug offers discounts as part of 'Loved By You' campaign The ‘Loved By You’ campaign saw around 8,000 of the retailer’s loyalty card customers vote for their preferred products. Brands... Continue Reading →
Shoppers angry after Tesco raises minimum spend for deliveries
Shoppers angry after Tesco raises minimum spend for deliveries Tesco has angered customers by announcing that it plans to increase its minimum spend for deliveries on online orders from £25 to £40. Any order under this limit, which applies to all orders placed after 23 July, will be subject to a £4 surcharge on top... Continue Reading →
Sainsbury’s facing legal action over unequal pay
Four female shopfloor workers have more than threated Sainsbury’s with legal action, claiming that they are paid less than men to do equally valuable jobs at the supermarket chain. The case resonates with one Asda faced towards the end of last year and still hasn’t settled. According to The Guardian, law firm Leigh Day,... Continue Reading →
Connection Finance boss steps down
Adam Castleton has finally grown tired of looking at French Connection’s balance sheet. The British fashion retailer’s Finance Director is to step down after two years, having accepted an offer at LSL Property Services. His departure date is yet to be confirmed but a search for his replacement is currently underway. Castleton joined French... Continue Reading →
Primark sales flatten
Overall sales at Primark were flat in the 16 weeks to June 20, but the UK continued to deliver a “positive” like-for-like performance despite claims that currency movements could affect next year’s results. Primark owner Associated British Foods (ABF), reported that sales for the 40 weeks to June 20 were 13% ahead of last... Continue Reading →
Nine West shoe store owner files for bankruptcy protection
TORONTO – Shoe distributor Sherson Group Inc., which operates Nine West retail stores in Canada, has filed for bankruptcy protection with the Ontario Superior Court. Court documents say the Toronto-based company owes $32.2 million to more than 60 different suppliers, lenders and other businesses. Included on the list is $4.7 million owed to the... Continue Reading →
Tiffany opens new boutique at Selfridges London
American luxury jeweler Tiffany & Co. has recently opened a new boutique in London at Selfridges department store on Oxford Street. Tiffany’s new boutique covers a space of 220-square-meter and features a Private Selling Room and a dedicated Bridal Salon where customers can sip champagne while browsing Tiffany jewelry designs. To mark the new opening... Continue Reading →
ITS NEW REGIONAL FLAGSHIP SHOP IN BIRMINGHAM ON 24 SEPTEMBER 2015
Multi-million pound regional flagship shop to open its doors on Thursday 24 September 2015 LONDON, 2015-7-6 — /EPR Retail News/ — John Lewis has announced today that its new regional flagship shop in Birmingham will open its doors to customers at 10am on Thursday 24 September 2015. The date marks the completion of the... Continue Reading →
Damac in London tie-up with fashion label Versace
Damac Properties is believed to be in advanced talks with Italian fashion house Versace over a branding partnership at the developer's first UK residential scheme. Damac is developing the 50-storey ‘Jenga’ tower in Vauxhall, south-west London, which it bought from McLaren Properties and Citygrove for a reported £600 million ($930 million) in April. According... Continue Reading →
Everything you need to know about the Sunday trading changes
In today’s emergency Budget, Chancellor George Osborne confirmed the government’s plans to press ahead with the first changes to Sunday trading hours in over 20 years. The change forms part of the Enterprise Bill. Retailers with physical stores of more than 3,000 sq ft are now freed from laws which prevent them from trading... Continue Reading →
Step aside Black Friday, meet Prime Day
Next week, on the eve of its 20th birthday, ecommerce giant Amazon is introducing Prime Day: a global shopping event promising to offer more deals than the legendary Black Friday event which started 90 years ago. Prime Day will be exclusive to Prime members in the US, UK, Spain, Japan, Italy, Germany, France, Canada and... Continue Reading →
Superdry eyeing entry into China
Supergroup, parent company of Superdry, is said to be closing in on a deal to take its Superdry brand to China. The group is in in talks with a joint venture partner about entering the country, reported The Sunday Times. Supergroup already amasses over 190 stores in Europe, and in March it took back... Continue Reading →
Apple Pay finally arriving in the UK “on 14 July”
For many British iPhone 6 owners, the excruciating wait for Apple Pay could be nearly over, with rumours suggesting the service will arrive next week on 14 July. The news, spotted – as ever – by 9to5Mac, comes from Apple retail employees in the UK who have been informed that Apple Pay will go... Continue Reading →
Apple reveals 19% drop in UK retail profits as sales flatline
Apple recorded an 18.6% drop in full-year profits from its UK retail operations last year, after it was hit by wage and rent rises. Apple reveals 19% drop in UK retail profits as sales flatline Full-year pre-tax profits slip 18.6% to £14.7m Sales flat at £897.6m Operating profit falls 17.9% to £15.3m The group, which... Continue Reading →
Health-and-beauty chain Clicks South Africa clicks on digital signage for in-store marketing
South African health-and-beauty retail chain Clicks has announced a partnership with South African digital signage solutions company Moving Tactics that entails installing digital signage within the chain's top 25 stores nationally, as well as marketing the media platform to Clicks' private-label suppliers and other brand suppliers. Moving Tactics has installed more than 500... Continue Reading →
Swatch Group to pay ‘record’ rent for Oxford Street location
Swatch Group to pay 'record' rent for Oxford Street location Swatch Group have signed a lease for a 'record rent' at 411 Oxford Street, property owned by Hong Kong investor group, Circle Group, according to global real estate services Savills, who acted for the landlord during the transaction. The Swiss watch retailer is set to... Continue Reading →
Latest high street discounter Pep & Co opens
Pep & Co, the new value fashion retailer by ex-Asda boss Andy Bond opened its first store in Kettering yesterday. Nearly 10 years ago Bond created Asda’s fashion line George and according to him, there is still room in the market for another player. He’s aiming to appeal to yummy mummies with mainstream... Continue Reading →
Dixons Carphone could open 500 stores in the US
Dixons Carphone, the UK retailer which was created through a merger last year, has announced that its Connected World Services (CWS) division is partnering with American telecoms company Sprint Corporation, to open and manage a significant number of Sprint-branded stores in the US. Sprint has nearly 60m customers. Initially, the electronics specialist will supply mobile phone... Continue Reading →
Nike founder Phil Knight to step down as chairman
NEW YORK - Phil Knight, who built Nike from a modest US shoe company into a global sports giant and marketing juggernaut, will step down as chairman next year, the company announced on Tuesday... No departure date was set for Knight, a former track standout at the University of Oregon who launched Nike in... Continue Reading →
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