Retail news

• Macy’s, Gap and Kohl’s put thousands on leave 

  30-03-2020 23:19
  Retail chains employing 420,000 say store closures will last longer than expected
  
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• Macy’s, Gap and Kohl’s among companies to put workers on leave 

  30-03-2020 23:19
  Retail chains say store closures will last longer than hoped
  
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• Macy’s and Kohl’s stop paying thousands of workers 

  30-03-2020 21:33
  Retail chains employing almost 250,000 say store closures will last longer than hoped
  
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• Retailers defend online sales during lockdown

  30-03-2020 20:20
  Chains say customers are buying essentials but ministers and unions question safety
  
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• Cheap Covid-19 test kits for Ocado staff may be unreliable, union warns

  30-03-2020 19:41
  
  Online grocer unable to explain why 100,000 kits ordered from China cost far less than rivalsCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageOnline food retailer Ocado has sourced 100,000 coronavirus tests for its workers from China, it has emerged, raising concerns over their quality after thousands of other kits bought from the country have had to be returned because they were substandard.The grocery home delivery company confirmed over the weekend it had spent £1.5m on
  
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• US grocers: cart these home

  30-03-2020 19:19
  Despite being a low-margin business, supermarkets are surging thanks to ‘pantry-loading’
  
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• COMMENT: Going digital during lockdown? Here’s what you need to know

  30-03-2020 17:48 via retailgazette.co.uk
  As of March 20, Prime Minister Boris Johnson officially ordered the closure of non-essential shops across the UK.
  With the country now officially on lockdown to prevent the spread of coronavirus, and with shoppers expected to stay home for the next few weeks if not months, the high street is facing a crisis that is unprecedented in living memory.
  For many brands, the high street is their bread and butter as it is responsible for the majority, if not all, of their sales each year. With shops now
  
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• Convenience stores “wrongly” told to stop selling Easter eggs

  30-03-2020 17:23 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Convenience stores allege council officers had attempted to tell them what items they could and could not sell
  // This included chocolate Easter eggs and hot cross buns
  // Association of Convenience Stores accused officials of “misreading” the rulesConvenience stores have been “wrongly” told to stop selling Easter eggs amid the coronavirus pandemic as they are considered non-essential goods, a trade body alleges.
  Some independent retailers reported that council of
  
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• First week of stay at home guidance sees mixed online sales results

  30-03-2020 17:06 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // First week of stay at home guidance leads to mixed online sales results
  // In week commencing March 15, week 1 of the government’s isolation guidance, online retail sales growth was down 2.2%
  // However, week-on-week growth was up 5.7%New data has shown that the government’s stay at home guidance issued before the lockdown due to coronavirus led to a mixed bag of online retail sales.
  According to the Online Retail Index from IMRG and Capgemini, the week commencing March 15 saw onl
  
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• My knight in shining armour | Letters

  30-03-2020 17:04
  
  Kirsty Thomas is amazed by the generosity of Leon co-founder John Vincent, while Pam Laurance recommends Covid-19 Mutual Aid groups for those struggling with food deliveriesCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageFood has become a major issue for us all and, as an 80-year old, I have been unsuccessful in securing home deliveries from local supermarkets, and I am now exhorted not to shop at all.To my rescue came a knight in shining armour, in the form of John Vincent, co
  
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• Carluccio's and BrightHouse collapse into administration

  30-03-2020 16:36
  
  Jobs of 4,400 staff in doubt as coronavirus lockdown hits high streetCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe Italian restaurant chain Carluccio’s and rent-to-own retailer BrightHouse both collapsed into administration on Monday, putting about 4,400 jobs at risk, in the first sign of the government’s coronavirus lockdown biting the high street. Related: Lockdown to spell disaster for thousands of pubs, restaurants and shopsContinue reading...
  
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• 43 jobs cut as Lombok collapses into administration

  30-03-2020 16:36 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Quantuma appointed as administrators to Lombok
  // All 43 members of Lombok’s staff have been made redundant
  // Lombok has been through two pre-pack administrations previously: one in 2009 and another in 2011Low consumer confidence and the recent coronavirus pandemic has pused furniture retailer Lombok into administration, resulting in the redundancies of all 43 members of staff.
  Brian Burke and Sean Bucknall of business advisory firm Quantuma were appointed as joint administrators for A
  
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• Arcadia postpones pension top-ups to save cash

  30-03-2020 15:59 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Arcadia Group to put a pause on payments to its pension scheme for 3 months
  // The decision aims to preserve liquidity amid temporary store closures from lockdown
  // The Pensions Regulator is reportedly aware of Arcadia’s deferral planSir Philip Green paused payments to its pension scheme for at least three months to help conserve cash during the coronavirus crisis.
  According to Sky News, Arcadia’s pension trustees have agreed to the deferment although the decision could
  
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• Shopping centre owner Hammerson says rent takings down two-thirds

  30-03-2020 15:40
  
  Retail landlord deluged with deferral requests amid coronavirus lockdownHammerson, one of Britain’s biggest shopping centre owners, was paid only about a third of the quarterly rent it was due last week as cash-strapped retailers struggled to survive the coronavirus crisis. Related: Lockdown to spell disaster for thousands of pubs, restaurants and shopsRelated: Intu warns of breach in debt commitments as retail rents collapseContinue reading...
  
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• Hammerson shop rent takings down two thirds

  30-03-2020 15:40
  
  Retail landlord deluged with deferral requests amid Covid-19 lockdownHammerson, one of Britain’s biggest shopping centre owners, was paid only about a third of the quarterly rent it was due last week as cash-strapped retailers struggled to survive the coronavirus crisis. Related: Lockdown to spell disaster for thousands of pubs, restaurants and shopsRelated: Intu warns of breach in debt commitments as retail rents collapseContinue reading...
  
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• BrightHouse falls into administration, 2400 jobs at risk

  30-03-2020 15:13 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // BrightHouse officially falls into administrators
  // Move will place 2400 jobs across 240 stores at risk
  // Investors had withdrawn support for a proposed restructuringBrightHouse has formalised its collapse into administration, placing the 2400 jobs from across 240 stores at risk of redundancy.
  According to Sky News, the UK’s biggest rent-to-own retailer was in court this morning to make its insolvency proceedings official after appointing accountancy firm Grant
  
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• Panic buying on wane as online shopping takes over, says bank

  30-03-2020 14:46
  
  Starling says peak supermarket shopping due to coronavirus was two weekends agoCoronavirus – latest updates See all our coronavirus coverage There is an early sign that supermarket panic buying may be on the wane, if figures from the online bank Starling are an accurate guide to how shoppers are behaving.The bank, which has 1.25 million UK account holders, said transactions in supermarkets peaked two weekends ago and had been falling since.Symptoms are defined by the NHS as either: Continu
  
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• Bank finds end to panic buying while online shopping takes over

  30-03-2020 14:46
  
  Starling says peak supermarket shopping due to coronavirus was two weekends agoThere is an early sign that supermarket panic buying may be on the wane, if figures from online bank Starling are a guide to how shoppers are behaving.The bank, which has 1.25 million UK account holders, said the spike in transactions in supermarkets was two weekends ago, and has been falling since. Continue reading...
  
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• Coronavirus: Burberry offers up resources to fight against the outbreak

  30-03-2020 14:31 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Burberry to supply surgical masks & retool Yorkshire factory to make non-surgical gowns & masks
  // It is also funding research into a single-dose vaccine developed by the University of OxfordBurberry is dedicating its resources to support those impacted by the outbreak of Covid-19 and prevent further infection.
  By leveraging its global supply chain, research and providing funding to increase food supplies, the luxury fashion retailer will “help to meet the most immediate medical
  
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• Save The High Street launches 12-week coronavirus support scheme

  30-03-2020 13:40 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Save The High Street launches new Covid-19 support programme for 200,000+ small retailers across the UK
  // Save The High Street will work with businesses for 12 weeks to develop a business plan
  // The plans will focus on what retailers should do to adapt and protect their businesses amid the pandemicSave The High Street has launched a new Covid-19 support programme for the 200,000-plus small retailers across the UK struggling amid the coronavirus pandemic.
  Save The High Street, a lobby group
  
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• Chancellor urged to force councils to free up cash for retailers

  30-03-2020 12:45 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Chancellor Rishi Sunak urged to get billions of tax rebates back into retailers’ bank accounts
  // BRC & Altus Group say retailers should claim some of the £4.1bn held in reserve by local councils
  // The extra cash is held by councils to cover the cost of appeals made over business rates billsChancellor Rishi Sunak is being urged to get billions of pounds worth of tax rebates back into the bank accounts of retailers to help aid cash flow during the coronavirus pandemic.
  The BRC
  
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• Amazon staff to strike “until the building gets sanitized” after another employee contracts virus

  30-03-2020 12:42 via chargedretail.co.uk
  
  Amazon staff at its key warehouse in New York are planning to strike today in a bid to force the retailer to deep clean the site and provide extra protection for employees.
  Around 100 workers plan to stage a work stoppage at Amazon’s JFK8 site on Staten Island after an employee was confirmed to have contracted COVID-19.
  While the employee has been told to self-isolate for 14 days by Amazon, the strike’s lead organiser Chris Smalls says the site has continued to run as usual at since
  
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• Monsoon Accessorize mulls sale as Covid-19 dents trading

  30-03-2020 12:41 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Monsoon Accessorize mulls possible sale of the business after Covid-19 disrupts trading
  // Restructuring experts at FRP Advisory are currently looking at optionsMonsoon Accessorize said on Sunday it had been badly affected by the coronavirus pandemic and was looking at a range of options.
  A possible sale of the business is one option, as restructuring experts from FRP Advisory were drafted in to work on possible scenarios.
  The fashion retailer said it had been ahead of the financial plan set
  
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• US retailers teeter on the brink as 630,000 outlets close

  30-03-2020 12:00
  More bankruptcies predicted as executives scrutinise stimulus deal
  
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• US retail sector teeters on the brink as 630,000 outlets close

  30-03-2020 12:00
  More bankruptcies predicted as executives scrutinise stimulus deal
  
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• Coronavirus: Arcadia cancels all orders until further notice

  30-03-2020 11:21 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Arcadia tells suppliers that orders are cancelled until further notice
  // Payment terms will be extended by 30 days as a result of the Covid-19 pandemicArcadia has reportedly informed suppliers that all orders will be cancelled until further notice and payment terms will be extended by 30 days due to the coronavirus outbreak.
  In a letter to suppliers, Arcadia wrote that the retail sector is facing “unprecedented times with the impacts of Covid-19 unfolding and changing daily,” Dra
  
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• Asos workers “afraid to go to work” walk out as customers call for boycott

  30-03-2020 11:07 via chargedretail.co.uk
  
  Asos workers have walked out of warehouses where they claim it is “impossible to socially distance” as the retailer refuses to close operations.
  Employees at Asos’ warehouse in Barnsley, South Yorks, have stopped working over fears that they’re being put in danger of contagion.
  Official government guidelines state that people must stay 6ft away from each other to prevent the virus spreading from person to person, however workers complained this was “impossible&rdquo
  
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• Coronavirus delays Mothercare franchise deal with Boots

  30-03-2020 10:52 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Mothercare updates its transformation plan
  // The coronavirus outbreak has delayed its franchise agreement with health & beauty giant Boots
  // The impact of coronavirus will “have a material impact on short-term revenues”Mothercare has said its UK franchise deal with Boots has been delayed due to the coronavirus outbreak, following an update in its transformation plan.
  The plans were first announced on November 5, but have since been updated to set out initiatives to become &l
  
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• 2/3 of rent not paid to Hammerson as retailers suffer coronavirus impacts

  30-03-2020 09:56 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Hammerson says it has only been paid 37% of the rent that was billed in the UK for Q2
  // Stripping out rent that was waived, deferred, or switched to monthly payments, the figure climbs to 57%
  // Hammerson expects to collect more money as it puts more temporary agreements in placeAlmost two-thirds of the rent that shopping centre owner Hammerson was hoping to see in its bank account last week has not materialised, the business said as shops around the country close their doors.
  The shopping c
  
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• Ted Baker announces new CEO amid coronavirus crisis

  30-03-2020 09:47 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Ted Baker announces CEO appointment amid the pandemic
  // Rachel Osborne was the finance boss and will now take the helm
  // She has held several roles in finance prior to Ted BakerTed Baker has promoted its chief financial officer Rachel Osborne as chief executive amid the coronavirus pandemic.
  Osborne joined the fashion and lifestyle retailer in November as finance boss, before being appointed as acting chief executive in December 2019.
  Osborne was also the chief financial officer at Deb
  
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• Boots to roll out Covid-19 tests for NHS staff

  30-03-2020 09:21 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Boots to test NHS staff for Covid-19 amid the pandemic
  // Managing director Seb James said Boots will recruit trained professionals from its workforce & wider communityBoots has said it will support the government amid the coronavirus pandemic by rolling out Covid-19 testing facilities for NHS workers across the UK.
  The health and beauty retailer confirmed that the testing will not be taking place in stores but locations remain unknown and described as scattered across the UK.
  Boots UK an
  
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• Morrisons to donate £10m worth of groceries to UK food banks

  30-03-2020 09:02 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Morrisons to send £10m worth of food to food banks across the UK
  // The grocer will ramp up production from manufacturing sites amid the coronavirus outbreakMorrisons has said it will donate £10 million worth of groceries to food banks across the UK amid the coronavirus pandemic, by boosting production at its manufacturing sites.
  The Big 4 grocer will operate its bakery, egg and fruit and vegetable packing sites for an extra hour each day in order to make, prepare and pack the foo
  
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• Person of the Year: How Dave Lewis fixed Tesco

  30-03-2020 08:01
  
  Turning round the company was about dealing in simple concepts and listening, says its CEO
  
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• Developing Markets: VkusVill feeds off Russia’s appetite for healthy eating

  30-03-2020 08:01
  
  The organic grocer has grown rapidly by tapping demand amid a ban on western foodstuffs
  
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• The ultimate test of whether leaders can do the right thing

  30-03-2020 05:00
  In years to come, businesses will be asked what action they took during the coronavirus pandemic
  
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• Morrisons gives food banks £10m during coronavirus outbreak

  30-03-2020 01:01
  
  Supermarket lifts restrictions and reopens cafes as depots to allow customers to donate Supermarket chain Morrisons is to distribute £10m worth of food to the UK’s food banks during the coronavirus outbreak by producing more fresh items from its own manufacturing sites and bolstering deliveries from its stores.The UK’s largest fresh food manufacturer will this week ramp up production at its bakery, egg and fruit and vegetable packing site by an extra hour every day to make, pre
  
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• Lockdown to spell disaster for thousands of pubs, restaurants and shops

  30-03-2020 01:01
  
  Bleak outlook will lead to tens of thousands of job losses and comes after tough conditions in 2019 The coronavirus pandemic is expected to lead to the demise of thousands of restaurants, pubs, shopping chains and other high street businesses, despite the government offering unprecedented financial support and changing insolvency rules to give companies more time to pay debts.The nationwide lockdown has already forced the permanent closure of almost all branches of the restaurant chains Carlucci
  
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• Lockdown set to kill off thousands of pubs, restaurants and shops

  30-03-2020 01:01
  
  Bleak outlook will lead to tens of thousands of job losses and comes after tough conditions in 2019 The coronavirus pandemic is expected to lead to the demise of thousands of restaurants, pubs, shopping chains and other high street businesses, despite the government offering unprecedented financial support and changing insolvency rules to give companies more time to pay debts.The nationwide lockdown has already forced the permanent closure of almost all branches of the restaurant chains Carlucci
  
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• WBR and Panasonic anticipates future challenges for retailers

  30-03-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Retailers facing the challenges of changing shopper habits and falling footfall at brick-and-mortar-stores are looking to innovative technology solutions to drive their businesses in the 2020’s,... View Article
  
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• WBR and Panasonic anticipate future challenges for retailers

  30-03-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Retailers facing the challenges of changing shopper habits and falling footfall at brick-and-mortar-stores are looking to innovative technology solutions to drive their businesses in the 2020’s,... View Article
  
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• United Carpets gives Covid-19 update

  30-03-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  United Carpets has said it is unable to provide guidance on the outcome for both its current and next financial year due to uncertainty surrounding the... View Article
  
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• Ted Baker appoints new chief executive

  30-03-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Fashion retailer Ted Baker has appointed Rachel Osborne as its chief executive on a permanent basis. Having joined the retailer in November 2019 as chief financial... View Article
  
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• Saving light & money: Getting smart about retail lighting

  30-03-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  It’s not long now until the clock will go forward, and we can all start looking forward to brighter and sunnier days! For many of us... View Article
  
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• Mothercare gives transformation plan update

  30-03-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Mothercare has said it is continuing to make progress with its plans to become a profitable international franchise operation. However, the company said the coronavirus outbreak... View Article
  
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• Morrisons to help restock the UK’s food banks

  30-03-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Morrisons is helping to restock the UK’s food banks during the coronavirus crisis through the production of extra food at its food making sites and the... View Article
  
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• Maersk Growth investment boosts Huboo’s multi-channel fulfillment growth plans

  30-03-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Maersk Growth, the corporate venture arm of container logistics company giant A.P. Moller – Maersk, today announced growth investment into Huboo, the UK-based multi-channel fulfillment service... View Article
  
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• Helping retailers maintain communications and operations during times of Social Distancing

  30-03-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Since the emergence and rapid spread of Covid-19, we’ve been living through unprecedented times which has seen a huge strain on every aspect of our society.... View Article
  
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• First week of stay at home guidance leads to mixed online sales results

  30-03-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  New figures have shown that the government’s stay at home guidance due to the coronavirus crisis led online retail sales growth to decline by 2.2% year-on-year... View Article
  
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• Coronavirus: What should retailers do for their customers?

  30-03-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  With the nation at home, e-commerce sales are booming in certain industries. However, customers are being left in the dark about when their parcel will arrive.... View Article
  
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• Boots supports goverment in rolling out Covid-19 testing for NHS workers

  30-03-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Boots UK is helping the government to roll out Covid-19 testing facilities for NHS workers. Locations are currently being decided and will be spread across the... View Article
  
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