Retail news

• Suburbs lead London's economic recovery while city centre struggles

  19-08-2020 20:11
  
  Credit card data shows consumer spending shifting from central London to local areas as employees work from homeCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageLondon’s suburbs are leading the capital’s economic recovery from the pandemic, as consumers shop and dine out locally, while the absence of office workers and tourists has kept city centre spending muted.Consumer outlay on clothes and hospitality in smaller local centres, such as Southall and East Ham, eithe
  
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• US retail: on Target earnings

  19-08-2020 19:22
  Company reports biggest quarterly sales surge in its 58-year history
  
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• Is Amazon close to knocking over the Big 4 grocers?

  19-08-2020 18:29 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Three weeks ago, the UK’s grocery sector was taken by surprise when online giant Amazon revealed plans to offer free grocery deliveries to Prime members across the UK by the end of the year.
  The Big 4 grocers, Tesco, Sainsbury’s Asda and Morrisons, currently do not offer free delivery on online orders, and in some ways, Amazon’s announcement threatens their efforts to profit from the pandemic-induced boom in online shopping.
  Amazon said customers can buy cheese, baked goo
  
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• 60% of UK retail staff worried about Covid-19 exposure

  19-08-2020 17:54 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // 60% of UK retail employees are worried about Covid-19 exposure to others who are not taking safety precautions seriously when returning to work
  // 46% of retail workers are concerned about having to be in close proximity to others in the workplace
  // 1 in 5 retail employees are worried about a lack of workplace sanitation and/or cleanlinessNew data has revealed that more than half of shop floor staff in the UK retail sector are worried about being exposed to other people who are not taking Co
  
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• Frasers Group could face probe after chair’s share purchase blunder

  19-08-2020 17:31 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Frasers Group could face a possible Financial Conduct Authority probe after chairman bought shares “in error”
  // David Daly had bought shares during the closed period, but sold them immediately and donated the £150 profit to charity
  // If the FCA pursues a case, it won’t go “all guns blazing”, say analystsThe accidental purchase of nearly 4000 shares in Frasers Group might win its chairman an investigation by the Financial Conduct Authority, but the regulat
  
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• In battle of British grocers, Morrisons uses Amazon to steal march on Asda

  19-08-2020 17:27
  Asda’s past, present and future look less than legendary; Lombard’s newest Stealth Stakhanovite
  
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• Apple becomes Wall Street's first $2tn company

  19-08-2020 16:52
  
  The tech giant behind the iPhone hit the crucial a share valuation of $467.77Apple has become America’s first 2 trillion dollar company, only two years after becoming the first company to be valued at $1tn by Wall Street.The technology powerhouse behind the iPhone needed to hit a share price of $467.77 to reach the milestone and moved through that barrier briefly during mid-morning trading on Nasdaq exchange on Wednesday.Apple just became the first company to have a market cap of $2 trilli
  
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• Poundland branches out to homewares with dedicated Pep&Co Home concessions

  19-08-2020 16:17 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Poundland makes major homewares move with launch of Pep&Co Home concessions
  // It’s the retailer’s third major “shop-in-shop” concept rolling out to 800-plus stores from Thursday
  // Pep&Co Home features bath towels, throws, photo frames and ornamentsPoundland has announced the launch of its new Pep&Co Home concessions, which will be rolled out across its stores from tomorrow.
  The discount retailer said that all 800-plus stores will feature the new range fro
  
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• UK shoppers 4 times more likely to buy from Amazon and Ebay than retailers’ own websites

  19-08-2020 15:16 via chargedretail.co.uk
  
  Amazon, Ebay and other online marketplaces are over four times more likely to see shoppers make a purchase than retailers’ websites and apps.
  Nearly 60 per cent of shoppers in the UK said they had made a purchase with an online marketplace since March, according to new research from Adobe.
  This compares to just 13 per cent of shoppers who say they’ve made purchase on a retailer’s dedicated website or app.
  Furthermore, between March and June the average online shopper purchased
  
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• Target reports biggest sales surge in its 58-year history

  19-08-2020 12:31
  Sales at US big-box chain leap 24% as gap between strongest and weakest retailers widens
  
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• Greenwich Market stalls face risk of closure as rents increase 60%

  19-08-2020 11:58 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Greenwich Market in London faces the risk of some of its traders closing stalls after rent prices increase
  // Hot food stallholders at the market were asked to pay 60% more per dayLondon’s Greenwich Market traders have reportedly expressed fear that their stalls may face closure following a huge increase in rent prices.
  Some traders have faced a 60 per cent daily rent hike since the coronavirus lockdown.
  Hot food stallholders at the market, which was founded in 1737, were asked to pay 6
  
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• Ocado accidentally replaces Waitrose items with M&S weeks ahead of switchover

  19-08-2020 11:18 via chargedretail.co.uk
  
  Ocado has accidently replaced a number of Waitrose products with Marks & Spencer products weeks before the official switchover is due to take place.
  Customers have reported finding M&S products in the place of Waitrose items which were reportedly out of stock.
  The orders were made in late July, over a month before Ocado is set to replace Waitrose’s 4000 item-range with M&S’ 6000-item range as part of a new joint venture dubbed Ocado Retail.
  According to Ocado, the substit
  
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• Asda scraps extra plastic in stores in new sustainability move

  19-08-2020 10:55 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Asda removes extra plastic from display units to reduce overall plastic usage
  // The grocer aims to reduce own-brand plastic use by 15% by 2021Asda has scrapped extra plastic from its display units and customer signage across all UK stores in a bid to reduce the use of own brand plastic by 15 per cent by 2021.
  The Big 4 grocer has made plans to transform its in-store displays into more sustainable materials as well as cut down on plastic and non-recyclable materials.
  Asda will be working
  
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• Yours Clothing owner acquires womenswear retailer Long Tall Sally

  19-08-2020 10:06 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Yours Clothing owner purchases womenswear retailer Long Tall Sally
  // AK Retail Holdings will take ownership on September 1The owner of Yours Clothing has purchased tall women’s specialist retailer Long Tall Sally.
  AK Retail Holdings, which also owns menswear brand BadRhino and maternity brand Bump It Up Maternity, will take ownership on September 1.
  In June, Long Tall Sally had plans to begin an orderly wind down of the business, but has scrapped these plans following the acquisition.R
  
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• Lack of fashion discounts drives inflation

  19-08-2020 10:04 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // UK inflation jumped to its highest level for four months in July, says ONS
  // Fashion retailers holding off from steep discounts after lockdown played a part in driving inflationUK inflation jumped to its highest level for four months in July as fashion retailers held off from steep discounts after lockdown, official figures have shown.
  The ONS said Consumer Prices Index (CPI) inflation lifted unexpectedly to one per cent in July from 0.6 per cent in June.
  This was far higher than expected, w
  
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• London's Greenwich Market stalls fear closure following huge rent increase

  19-08-2020 09:00
  
  Some traders faced 60% daily rent hike in aftermath of coronavirus lockdownCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageTraders at the historic Greenwich Market in south-east London say they could be forced out of business after being hit with a massive rent increase in the wake of the coronavirus lockdown.Hot food stallholders in the cobbled square market, which has operated since 1737, were originally asked to pay 60% more per day, while some drinks sellers have had their
  
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• Usdaw starts petition to protect retail workers from crime & abuse

  19-08-2020 08:49 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Shopworkers union Usdaw launches petition to protect retail workers against crime
  // Usdaw recorded a rise in abuse cases during lockdownA UK shopworkers union has begun a House of Commons petition in an effort to protect retail workers from violence and abuse.
  Trade union Usdaw’s leader Paddy Lillis launched the petition after it recorded a sharp increase in the number of cases of abuse towards shopworkers during the Covid-19 pandemic.
  The survey found that on average, shopworkers face
  
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• Shopworkers’ union Usdaw starts petition to protect retail workers

  19-08-2020 08:49 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Shopworkers union Usdaw launches petition to protect retail workers against crime
  // Usdaw recorded a rise in abuse cases during lockdownA UK shopworkers union has begun a House of Commons petition in an effort to protect retail workers from violence and abuse.
  Trade union Usdaw’s leader Paddy Lillis launched the petition after it recorded a sharp increase in the number of cases of abuse towards shopworkers during the Covid-19 pandemic.
  The survey found that on average, shopworkers face
  
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• Frasers Group chair “accidentally” buys shares during closed period

  19-08-2020 08:26 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Frasers Group chair David Daly bought shares during closed period
  // Daly joined Frasers Group in 2017 following a 30-year career at NikeMike Ashley’s Frasers Group has revealed that its non-executive chairman David Daly bought 3912 ordinary shares in the company “in error” on Monday.
  The purchase – worth more than £11,000 – is in violation of City rules and is the latest from a bundle of controversies for the retail empire.
  Frasers Group, which owns sports
  
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• China’s Pinduoduo clashes with Tesla over heavily discounted car offers

  19-08-2020 07:21
  US company objected to sale of subsidised Model 3 electric vehicles on ecommerce platform
  
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• Want to boost sales and acquire loyal customers? Plan Black Friday now

  19-08-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Like almost everything else in 2020, Black Friday on 27th November will be different to previous years. Forget huge queues, red sale signs and frenzied crowds.... View Article
  
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• TJX Companies posts second quarter loss

  19-08-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  TK Maxx owner  TJX Companies has posted a net loss of $214.2 million in its second quarter after trade was impacted by store closures during the Covid-19... View Article
  
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• On demand webinar – Successfully navigating the path to the inbox during unfamiliar times

  19-08-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Successfully navigating the path to the inbox during unfamiliar times. Get access to invaluable advice in this on demand webinar including how to successfully continue to... View Article
  
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• Long Tall Sally acquired by Yours Clothing owner

  19-08-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Long Tall Sally has been acquired by AK Retail, the owner of the Yours Clothing women’s fashion brand. Specialising in fashion for tall women, the company said back... View Article
  
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• Deliver not Dilemma: How to eliminate delivery dilemmas

  19-08-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  The needs of today’s consumer have changed. We want access to anything and everything, and we want it pronto, delivered on time as intended, but more... View Article
  
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• Debenhams begins reopening in-store restaurants

  19-08-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  The Debenhams department store has begun reopening its in-store food outlets after securing agreements with new and existing partners. When the retailer reopened 124 stores in June... View Article
  
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• Bensons for Beds partners with Stacey Solomon

  19-08-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Bensons for Beds has announced that TV presenter Stacey Solomon has become its first major brand ambassador as it launches its new Rollo by Slumberland ready-to-go mattresses. The... View Article
  
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• Asda removes plastic from in-store printed media

  19-08-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Asda has removed unnecessary plastic from freestanding display units and customer signage in its UK stores as part of plans to reduce the use of own... View Article
  
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• Argos extends home deliveries to more Scottish islands

  19-08-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Argos is expanding its delivery service in the Scottish islands through a new trial that will enable shoppers in some of the remotest areas to get their online... View Article
  
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