Retail news

• John Lewis criticised for lack of diversity in top ranks

  16-06-2020 21:30
  
  Retailer confirms just six of its UK-based managers are people of colourThe lack of diversity in the management ranks at the high-street favourite John Lewis has been criticised after it emerged that just six of the retail group’s top 158 UK managers are people of colour.Of the permanent senior UK managers at the company – which is owned by its staff and runs 50 department stores and the Waitrose supermarket chain – three directors are from an ethnic minority. They are the chai
  
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• Landlords cry foul over ‘morally wrong’ Poundstretcher restructuring 

  16-06-2020 19:32
  CVA documents show retailer ploughed £31m in 120 new stores that ‘didn’t perform as forecast’
  
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• Good news for JP – whoever you are | Brief letters

  16-06-2020 19:23
  
  Morrisons phone line | Two-metre distancing | Panting jogger | Testing shambles | Alien civilisations
  I would like to put in a good word for Morrisons, the only supermarket with an intelligent management. Because they understand that elderly, self-isolating people may not be computer-literate. Other supermarkets only sell their goods via computer and answering machines. But if elderly customers ring Morrisons’ special line, they are answered by a real live person who takes their order by p
  
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• The grand reopening: shoppers return to London stores

  16-06-2020 18:27
  Non-essential retail is back — with queues, jazz bands and hand gel
  
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• Waitrose reaches new delivery milestone

  16-06-2020 17:40 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Waitrose has revealed its online business processed over 150,000 orders in a week
  // It is adding 150 new delivery vans to its fleet to enable it to increase its delivery slotsWaitrose has reached a milestone after seeing its online business process more than 150,000 orders in a week for the first time.
  The retailer’s weekly online orders are now more than double those processed at the start of the year.
  Waitrose said it is also adding 150 new delivery vans to its fleet to enable it to
  
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• eBay: hog wild

  16-06-2020 16:26
  Once the classifieds unit is acquired, expect the core marketplace business to go up for sale next
  
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• Monsoon Accessorize: What went wrong?

  16-06-2020 15:58 via retailgazette.co.uk
  A BRIEF TIMELINE
  1973: Market stall trader Peter Simon opened the first Monsoon store in Beauchamp Place, London after being inspired by the colour and local fashion of India, Turkey, Iran and Afghanistan during a road trip.
  The first Monsoon collections featured clothes made with hand-loomed cotton and silk fabrics, organic vegetable dyes and artisan block-printing techniques.
  Monsoon worked with craftspeople in villages and small communities.
  1984: The first Accessorize store opened in Lo
  
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• Claire’s customers card details stolen in month-long cyber attack

  16-06-2020 14:52 via chargedretail.co.uk
  
  Claire’s customers may have had their card payment details stolen after the brand and its sister company Icing were hit by a skimming cyber-attack.
  The accessories retailer, which was forced to shut its entire physical store estate in 2018, saw its website hit by a ‘magecart’ attack from April 25 to June 13.
  Magecart attacks see hacked illegally install software which makes copies of customers payment data at checkout and has become one of the leading causes of online fraud.
  Cl
  
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• US retail sales rebound almost 18% in May as consumers return

  16-06-2020 14:49
  Biggest monthly gain on records as spending in stores is more than double economists’ expectations
  
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• Greggs set to reopen 800 stores but warns of lower sales

  16-06-2020 14:01
  Food-to-go chain scraps plans for new openings and looks to cut rents due to uncertain outlook
  
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• Charity shops to become “treasure trove of gems” after lockdown

  16-06-2020 13:59 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Charity retailers anticipate influx of donations from customers waiting for them to reopen after lockdown
  // Many are still looking for volunteers to help out as most staff are still self-isolatingCharity shops are expected to be a treasure trove of “gems” when they reopen due to people clearing out their homes during lockdown.
  Oxfam, which is reopening around 10 stores this week and dozens more within a fortnight, said it would isolate donated items for 72 hours before being sort
  
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• If Asos shoppers were in a socially-distanced queue it would stretch 891 miles

  16-06-2020 13:16 via chargedretail.co.uk
  
  Yesterday saw shoppers’ queue for hours in lines many described as at least a “mile long” as non-essential retail shops opened in the UK for the first time in 82 days.
  The Guide Liverpool@TheGuideLpoolHere’s the queue for #Zara @Liverpool_ONE
  3511:03 AM – Jun 15, 2020
  Twitter Ads info and privacy23 people are talking about this
  Retailers including Primark, Zara and Apple saw queues stretch the length of high streets as retail-deprived shoppers jumped on the chance t
  
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• Poundstretcher could close 250 UK stores

  16-06-2020 12:45
  
  Cut-price retailer asks landlords to back CVA insolvency process as part of rescue restructurePoundstretcher could close over half its stores – more than 250 outlets affecting more than 2,000 jobs – as part of a planned rescue restructure.The cut-price retailer, which also owns the Bargain Buys chain, is asking landlords and other creditors to back a creditors voluntary arrangement, an insolvency process under which it wants to slash rents on 84 stores by more than 30%. Continue read
  
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• Greggs to reopen 800 stores on Thursday

  16-06-2020 12:07 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Greggs to reopen 800 stores from Thursday for takeaway only
  // The remaining 1000 stores will reopen by early July
  // Reopened stores will have a reduced menu to ensure social distancing in kitchens & workspacesGreggs has announced plans to reopen around 800 stores for takeaways from Thursday with the aim of welcoming customers to its remaining 1000 sites by early July.
  Bosses unveiled the new-look stores, with floor markings, protective clothes for staff and screens at counters among sev
  
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• Arcadia in talks with logistics group to improve transportation

  16-06-2020 11:51 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Arcadia is in “advanced discussions” with logistics group Clippers
  // The companies are discussing a transportation contract for Arcadia’s store delivery networkArcadia is currently in talks with logistics solutions Clipper Logistics to discuss a transportation contract for its store delivery network.
  The current transportation contract is managed by another logistics provider and consultations on Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment), also known as TUPE, are e
  
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• Ex-Ebay executives charged with cyber-stalking after sending cockroaches, bloody masks and funeral wreathes to journalists

  16-06-2020 11:08 via chargedretail.co.uk
  
  Six former Ebay executives and staff are being charged with cyber-stalking and tampering with witnesses after launching an alleged campaign of intimidation against journalists.
  Ebay’s former director of safety and security James Baugh and former director of global resiliency David Harville have been charged alongside four others, while Ebay’s former chief executive David Wenig was implicated but not charged.
  The group are accused of launching a campaign of intimidation against Ina an
  
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• Vans owner VF Corp eyes new acquisitions despite Covid-19

  16-06-2020 11:00 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // VF Corp CEO said the company is seeking new acquisitions
  // The group said now is the best time to expand its portfolio despite the Covid-19 pandemicVans owner VF Corp has reportedly said it is seeking new acquisitions despite the uncertainty brought on by Covid-19.
  The company, which also owns retailers Timberland and The North Face, is looking to increase its portfolio as it said now is a good time to search for acquisitions of clothing, footwear and accessories brands, Financial Times repo
  
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• Joules expects £3m loss as Covid-19 hits revenues

  16-06-2020 09:49 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Joules predicts it will end 2020 with underlying loss of between £2m and £3m
  // The Covid-19 lockdown had an impact on revenue as stores temporarily shutJoules has said it expects to conclude 2020 with an underlying loss of between £2 million and £3 million before tax for the year to May 31.
  The fashion group said the coronavirus lockdown accelerated the drop in revenue as stores across the UK were forced to shut.
  Joules said that the impact of the pandemic between Mar
  
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• Oak Furnitureland’s future secured in pre-pack administration deal

  16-06-2020 09:46 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Oak Furnitureland’s future secured through acquisition by Davidson Kempner Capital Management
  // The transaction was completed via a pre-pack administration deal
  // All stores and employees have been saved and current CEO Alex Fisher will stay onOak Furnitureland has been acquired by a global investment management firm for an undisclosed sum as part of a deal to secure the retailer’s future.
  Davidson Kempner Capital Management bought out the furniture retailer via a re-pack a
  
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• Poundstretcher unveils CVA proposal

  16-06-2020 09:29 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Poundstretcher launches CVA proposal to help turnaround the business
  // No job cuts or store closures are outlined, but there will be a push for rent cuts across most of its store estate
  // KPMG has been lined up to handle the CVAPoundstretcher has launched a CVA proposal that features significant rent cuts as the discount retailer embarks on a major restructuring scheme.
  Poundstretcher said the CVA forms part of a wider turnaround plan which seeks to restructure its UK store portfolio, stem
  
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• Footfall jumps nearly 40% on reopening day as queues dominate high streets

  16-06-2020 09:13 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Footfall in England was up by 38.8% on last week as non-essential shops reopened for the first time in 3 months
  // Overall footfall was still around a third less than on the same day last year, Springboard said
  // YouGov polling suggested just 40% of people were comfortable to go back into clothes shopsCustomers turned out in force yesterday as England’s retail parks, high streets and shopping centres reopened after a three-month shutdown, with footfall rising by more than a third on la
  
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• Ahmad BinDawood grapples with coronavirus challenge

  16-06-2020 05:00
  Sales surge at family group that controls two supermarket chains and online grocery platform
  
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• Ahmad BinDawood fits a pattern of young Saudi modernisers

  16-06-2020 05:00
  He is the chief executive of a family group that controls two supermarket chains and an online grocery platform
  
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• Wickes owner Travis Perkins to cut 2,500 jobs

  16-06-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Wickes and Toolstation owner Travis Perkins is planning to cut around 2,500 jobs, or 9% of its workforce, due to the Covid-19 pandemic. In a statement,... View Article
  
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• Waitrose.com passes new milestone of 150,000 orders per week

  16-06-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Waitrose has revealed that its online business has processed more than 150,000 orders in a week for the first time. The milestone means the retailer’s weekly... View Article
  
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• Retail footfall up 41.7% by 12pm yesterday

  16-06-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  New figures from Springboard have shown that footfall across retail locations in England had increased by 41.7% by 12pm yesterday compared to last week. The reopening... View Article
  
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• Joules to post pre-tax loss following impact of Covid-19

  16-06-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Lifestyle clothing retailer Joules has said it expects to post a pre-tax loss for the year to 31 May following disruption to its business due to... View Article
  
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• H&M sales halve during lockdown

  16-06-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Fashion retailer H&M saw its net sales fall by 50% to 28.7 billion Swedish kronor in its second quarter after it was hit by Covid-19 store... View Article
  
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• Greggs to reopen 800 stores this week

  16-06-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Greggs has said it will be reopening around 800 shops to takeaway customers this Thursday following a trial programme in a small number of shops. The... View Article
  
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• Download: The Ultimate Guide to Marketing AI

  16-06-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  To compete and stay relevant in a rapidly changing world, businesses need to embrace the idea of using data and AI for their marketing activities. Download... View Article
  
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