Retail news

• J Crew: abandon ship

  04-05-2020 19:13 via ft.com
  A heavy debt load scuppered the business 
  
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• JD Sports blocks Boohoo director appointment

  04-05-2020 17:20 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // JD Sports blocks Boohoo boardroom appointment
  // Non-executive director Kath Smith was due to join Boohoo on May 1JD Sports has reportedly withdrawn consent of its non-executive director Kath Smith joining the Boohoo boardroom in the same role.
  Smith has been a non-executive director at JD Sports since May 2019.
  She was previously general manager and vice-president of The North Face EMEA.READ MORE:JD Sports delays full-year results & reveals 75% salary cut for CEO
  Boohoo full year profits
  
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• Hotel Chocolat to reopen some UK stores for takeaway sales

  04-05-2020 16:33
  
  London Borough Market branch will test safe ways of working in coronavirus crisisCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageHotel Chocolat is to reopen up to five stores next week – for takeaways only – after restarting production at its UK factory to help top up dwindling supplies.The specialist retailer and cafe operator said it will reopen first in Borough Market in London, serving hot chocolates, ice-creams and coffees, as it tests out new ways of working w
  
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• COMMENT: Mastering 3 coronavirus challenges with customer loyalty

  04-05-2020 16:09 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Retailers today face bottlenecks in their online delivery, depressed consumer confidence, and the need to engage customers now and when the shops open again.
  However, the challenges can be met by telling a memorable story from the supply chain, helping customers build up savings for a future outlay, and making shopping an enlivening group experience both online and offline.
  Not only will customers be more loyal, other stakeholders will be reassured to see the retailer doing its best in the crisi
  
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• Royal Mail, Post Office & eBay offer online retailers lockdown tips

  04-05-2020 15:32 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Royal Mail, Post Office & eBay team up to offer 10 top tips for online sellers during lockdown
  // Advice comes as small businesses & individual sellers come to terms with store closures and a surge in online shopping
  // The three firms outline how to use their services easily, safely, in line with government guidelines on social distancingRoyal Mail, Post Office and eBay have teamed up to publish guidance to help small retailers and online marketplace sellers navigate the surge in con
  
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• VP at Amazon Web Services resigns over whistleblower firings

  04-05-2020 14:43 via ft.com
  Senior software engineer says he quit after firings over coronavirus safety protests
  
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• VP at Amazon unit resigns over whistleblower firings

  04-05-2020 14:43 via ft.com
  Senior engineer at Amazon Web Services says he quit after staff fired over safety protests
  
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• Amazon web services VP resigns over whistleblower firings

  04-05-2020 14:43 via ft.com
  Senior software engineer says he quit after staff were fired over safety protests
  
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• Amazon VP resigns over whistleblower firings

  04-05-2020 14:43 via ft.com
  A senior engineer at Amazon Web Services says he quit in ‘dismay’ after staff protesting warehouse safety were fired
  
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• Amazon unit’s VP resigns over whistleblower firings

  04-05-2020 14:43 via ft.com
  Senior engineer at Amazon Web Services says he quit in ‘dismay’ after staff protesting over warehouse safety concerns were fired
  
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• Fashion chain J Crew files for bankruptcy protection in US

  04-05-2020 14:28
  
  Chapter 11 filing is the first by a major US retailer during the coronavirus lockdownThe fashion chain J Crew has became the first major US retailer to file for bankruptcy protection during the coronavirus shutdown.The New York-based brand’s parent company made the Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing in a Virginian federal court to buy itself breathing space as it plans to hand control over to its lenders, in exchange for the cancellation of $1.65bn (£1.3bn) of its debts. J Crew Group&rsquo
  
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• Fashion group J Crew pushed into bankruptcy

  04-05-2020 14:16 via ft.com
  US retailer of preppy clothing was already under pressure from heavy debt load
  
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• Poundland expands footprint in sex toys market with new £1 vibrators

  04-05-2020 13:45 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Poundland launches £1 vibrators after pregnancy kits soar during the coronavirus lockdown
  // Available in more than 700 Poundland stores which remain open to sell essentialsPoundland has launched a new £1 vibrator just days after it revealed a massive surge in the sales of pregnancy test kits thanks to the coronavirus lockdown.
  The discount retailer said the £1 Caress goes on sale this week at more than 700 Poundland stores which have been able to remain open to sell essenti
  
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• Asda to give online delivery priority pass to 3500 care homes and donate 250,000 face masks

  04-05-2020 12:24 via chargedretail.co.uk
  
  Asda is giving 3500 care homes priority access to its online shopping service and donating 250,000 medical grade face masks “to help them keep their residents and workers safe”.
  This morning Asda emailed thousands of care homes “currently registered with Asda” to inform them they would receive a free priority pass, giving them early visibility of its online slots.
  Furthermore, Asda said it planned to donate a whopping 250,000 medical grade face to care homes across the UK
  
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• Fashion group J Crew pushed into bankruptcy by coronavirus

  04-05-2020 11:59 via ft.com
  US retailer known for its preppy clothing had already been under pressure from heavy debt load
  
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• Ocado to issue 3000 refunds after mislabeling face masks as FFP3 standard

  04-05-2020 11:27 via chargedretail.co.uk
  
  Ocado is set to issue refunds to thousands of customers after it wrongly labelled face masks which “did not match the exact specification stated”.
  The online grocer sent an email to around 3000 customers last week, informing them they will be refunded for face masks advertised as “FFP3” standard, according to The Telegraph.
  FFP3 (filtering face piece) rated masks are the highest quality respirators, according to the government, which filter 99 per cent of airborne pa
  
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• Lidl closes UK branch after workers contract Covid-19

  04-05-2020 11:13 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Lidl closed its Middlesbrough branch after staff contracted Covid-19
  // The store remained closed over the weekend due to a shortage of staffLidl has closed one of its branches, becoming the first supermarket in the UK to close its doors due to the coronavirus pandemic.
  The German discounter was forced to close its Middlesbrough branch on Friday after several staff members were tested positive for Covid-19.
  The store remained closed over the weekend due to a shortage of staff amid the ou
  
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• £6.1m funding boost for high streets & town centres to survive Covid-19

  04-05-2020 10:45 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // High streets and town centres will receive £6.1m to survive through pandemic
  // The money will be paid to local authorities and dispersed to Business Improvement DistrictsHigh streets and town centres in England will receive a £6.1 million funding boost to help them survive the coronavirus pandemic.
  High Streets Minister Simon Clarke MP said on Friday that hundreds of local business partnerships across England will share £6.1 million of funding to spend on projects that
  
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• Chancellor urged to taper furlough payments once lockdown eases

  04-05-2020 10:07 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Lib Dems propose the Treasury pays 50% of employees’ salaries in the first month after they can return to work
  // By the 3rd month, the government would pay 30% of their salaries and by the 4th month, the company pays the full salaries
  // Lib Dems believe many firms will not have the cashflow to pay employees’ full salaries after lockdownChancellor Rishi Sunak has been urged to introduce a “wage subsidy package” to taper furlough payments when lockdown measures are eas
  
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• Harrods to offer remote personal shopping amid lockdown

  04-05-2020 09:52 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Harrods will offer personal shopping for some customers
  // The luxury department store is working towards a lockdown exit strategyHarrods is reportedly set to offer personal shopping for some of its “prized” customers as it draws up plans to begin reopening post Covid-19.
  Employees at the luxury department store will take orders over the phone and by smartphone messaging, Mail on Sunday reported.
  The service is described as “remote clienteling”, and is due to begi
  
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• Hotel Chocolat online sales spike fails to offset store closures

  04-05-2020 09:42 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Hotel Chocolat Easter sales surge online but not enough to offset store closures
  // CEO Angus Thirlwell says “plans are in progress” for the retailer to reopen its stores
  // Hotel Chocolat also secured a new £35m loan with Lloyds BankHotel Chocolat posted a surge in online sales prior to Easter, but this failed to fully offset the closure of its stores in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.
  The chocolate retailer said it was encouraged by the “agility and resilience&
  
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• Sports Direst & House of Fraser managers allegedly asked to work on furlough

  04-05-2020 09:25 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Store managers from Sports Direct & House of Fraser chains say they were asked to work while on furlough
  // Frasers Group allegedly asked store managers to go into stores once a week to pack stock to return to the warehouse
  // Frasers Group staff were also asked to return to work full time and on 90% pay from todayMike Ashley’s Frasers Group is under fire after store managers from its Sports Direct and House of Fraser chains alleged that they were pressured to work while on furlough
  
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• Sports Direct & House of Fraser managers allegedly asked to work on furlough

  04-05-2020 09:25 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Store managers from Sports Direct & House of Fraser chains say they were asked to work while on furlough
  // Frasers Group allegedly asked store managers to go into stores once a week to pack stock to return to the warehouse
  // Frasers Group staff were also asked to return to work full time and on 90% pay from todayMike Ashley’s Frasers Group is under fire after store managers from its Sports Direct and House of Fraser chains alleged that they were pressured to work while on furlough
  
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• Currys fails to replace housebound woman’s microwave

  04-05-2020 08:00
  
  Carers rely on Kenwood device to cook 90-year-old’s meals – and it is still under guaranteeMy neighbour is 90, housebound and reliant on carers. In early April her Kenwood microwave – bought less than three months ago and still under guarantee – stopped working. This meant her carers could not use it to heat meals for her lunch and tea.I phoned Currys (where she bought it) on the same day and after waiting for over an hour managed to speak to someone. Unable to contact a
  
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• Museum of Covid-19: the story of the crisis told through everyday objects

  04-05-2020 07:00
  
  Scrawled signs, neon rainbows, flour mania … the V&A’s ‘rapid response’ collectors are creating a show for our times, targeting the everyday objects taking on new meaning in the coronavirus ageBefore my world was reduced to a two-mile radius from my house, I never realised how interesting other people’s front gardens could be. When your life is confined to the same four walls, with each journey to the kitchen an odyssey, the world outside takes on a whole new a
  
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• Prada re-opens production sites

  04-05-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Prada has announced that it has begun to resume production at its Tuscany workshop and its factories in the Umbria, Marche and Milan regions. The luxury... View Article
  
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• Logile: Making the Case: Employee Scheduling as a Sales Enablement Tool

  04-05-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Guest Blog: Matthew Zelek, Senior Manager, Pre-Sales Consulting. Many benefit drivers associated with implementing workforce management solutions are apparent. For example, an effective employee scheduling solution... View Article
  
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• Hotel Chocolat gives covid-19 trading update as it secures new £35 million credit facility

  04-05-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Hotel Chocolat has said the closure of all its retail stores due to the covid-19 lockdown has a material impact on trading, especially over Easter. However,... View Article
  
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• Co-op Central England Co-op supports Birmingham nurses with donation of washable bags

  04-05-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Central England Co-op is supporting nurses and carers on standby to work on the frontline at Birmingham’s NHS Nightingale Hospital with a donation of almost 2,500... View Article
  
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• Central England Co-op supports Birmingham nurses with donation of washable bags

  04-05-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Central England Co-op is supporting nurses and carers on standby to work on the frontline at Birmingham’s NHS Nightingale Hospital with a donation of almost 2,500... View Article
  
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• Asda to offer 3,500 care homes priority slots for online delivery

  04-05-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Asda has offered thousands of small care homes priority access to online delivery slots for the next six months. It has also donated 250,000 medical grade... View Article
  
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• Arket to launch in China

  04-05-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Clothing and homewares retailer Arket is to enter the Chinese market by launching an online store on Alibaba’s Tmall platform in August. The launch will mark... View Article
  
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