Retail news

• Topshop owner accused of potential legal breach over redundancy terms

  24-08-2020 20:05
  
  Arcadia Group proposing to base some workers’ notice pay on their furlough earnings instead of their full salaryThe owner of Topshop and Topman has been accused of potential breaching employment law by offering staff being made redundant less favourable terms for their notice periods, linked to the government’s furlough scheme.Sir Philip Green’s struggling Arcadia Group, which also owns Miss Selfridge, Evans, Wallis, Burton and Dorothy Perkins, is making up to 500 head office s
  
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• John Lewis steals a march by opening Christmas shop early

  24-08-2020 19:52
  
  Surge in demand prompts chain to start online sales 10 days earlier than last yearJohn Lewis is opening its Christmas shop earlier than ever after it found that searches for festive products had nearly quadrupled compared with last year.The retailer said the online store, selling lights, trees and hampers, opened on Monday lunchtime, 10 days ahead of last year, as shoppers bored by weeks of lockdown were already thinking about how to decorate their homes in December. Continue reading...
  
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• Will M&S’s Remarksable campaign be the winner of its transformation plan?

  24-08-2020 18:00 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Marks & Spencer is one retailer that has undergone some of the most drastic changes in the past year or so, as it continues to push on with its transformation strategy.
  From rolling out food-to-go vending machines to relaunching its Sparks loyalty scheme, to sealing a deal with online grocer Ocado, the high street stalwart is now scurrying to find ways to stay afloat amid the coronavirus pandemic.
  The retail sector was left stunned when M&S confirmed last week that it would axe a total
  
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• Footfall rises fourfold last week

  24-08-2020 17:23 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Retail footfall across all destinations in the UK jumped 4.1% last week, a four-fold increase on the week before
  // Also compares to a 1.8% increase the same week last year, says Springboard
  // Last week’s footfall surge driven by big recoveries in Greater London and the South EastUK retail footfall grew 4.1 per cent last week, a four fold increase from the previous seven day period.
  According to insights firm Springboard, the latest data compares to a rise of 0.8 per cent in the prior
  
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• Harvey Nichols inches closer to restructure after calling in advisers

  24-08-2020 16:11 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Harvey Nichols drafts in restructuring experts from PwC
  // Only 4 out of its 8 stores in the UK & Ireland have re-opened since lockdownHarvey Nichols has reportedly taken a significant step towards launching a business restructure after calling in advisers to examine its options.
  According to The Times, the luxury department store chain drafted in restructuring experts from PwC as only four out of its eight stores in the UK and Ireland have re-opened since lockdown.
  The retailer’s B
  
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• M&S partners with Doddle to launch drive-through click & collect service

  24-08-2020 16:01 via chargedretail.co.uk
  
  Marks & Spencer has partnered with Doddle to trial new click & collect technology in a number of its stores.
  M&S will now launch a drive-through collection service at its store in Camberley, allowing shoppers to collect their orders contactlessly from their vehicles.
  It is also launching rapid contactless click & collect services at its stores in Hempstead Valley, Camberley and Longbridge.
  It comes as the retailer has dramatically expanded the number of stores offering click &
  
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• Mike Ashley’s Frasers strikes £37m deal for DW gyms

  24-08-2020 14:49 via ft.com
  Sports Direct owner to save 922 jobs as it agrees to buy parts of DW Whelan Sports but not the brand
  
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• Studio hits “digital sweet spot” as sales & profits rise

  24-08-2020 14:14 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Studio reports 8.6% rise in adjusted pre-tax profit to £31.2m in the 52 weeks to March 27
  // Total group revenue increased by 2.2% to £514.8m
  // Revenue from core Studio brand grew 3.3% to £434.9mOnline value retailer Studio has said it has hit the “digital sweet spot” after posting a rise in annual profits and sales.
  The full-year period ending March 27, the company formerly known as Findel reported an 8.6 per cent uptick in adjusted pre-tax profit to £31.
  
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• Tesco to create 16,000 new permanent jobs

  24-08-2020 13:47 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Tesco to create 16,000 new jobs in the UK to support online growth
  // Most of the roles expected to be filled by staff who joined temporarily at the start of the pandemicTesco has announced that it will create 16,000 new permanent jobs in the UK, most of which will support the surge in customer demand at its online business.
  The Big 4 giant said most of the roles are expected to be filled by staff who joined on a temporary basis at the start of the pandemic, when Tesco went on a hiring spree
  
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• Amazon’s 2nd-highest ranking executive Jeff Wilke to step down

  24-08-2020 13:44 via chargedretail.co.uk
  
  Amazon chief of consumer business Jeff Wilke, who was touted as a likely successor to Jeff Bezos, will depart from the company next year.
  Wilke, who is considered to be the second-highest ranking executive at Amazon, will step down in the first quarter of next year to “explore personal interests that have taken a back seat for over two decades”.
  Having worked for Amazon since 1999, Wilke is understood to have played a key role in building and expanding the company’s vast logist
  
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• Tesco gives permanent jobs to 16,000 staff taken on in Covid crisis

  24-08-2020 13:32
  
  Decision comes on back of surge in online grocery trade and home deliveriesCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageTesco is to permanently employ 16,000 extra staff taken on during the pandemic to help support a surge in online grocery trade.The roles include 10,000 pickers, who select and pack grocery orders for home delivery, and 3,000 drivers, as well as a variety of other roles in stores and distribution centres. Related: Bag-in-box wines enjoy sales boost during UK
  
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• 90 job cuts at heritage dept store Jarrold, including CEO

  24-08-2020 13:18 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // CEO of 250-year-old dept store Jarrold, Minnie Moll, made redundant with immediate effect
  // In addition, 90 other jobs across the business made redundant, almost 1/4 of the total workforce
  // Moll had announced in June that Jarrold will reduce employment costs by 20%Norwich’s heritage department store Jarrold has made almost one quarter of its total workforce redundant, including its chief executive Minnie Moll.
  The 250-year-old retailer said Moll has left the business with immediate e
  
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• Tesco to create 16,000 permanent jobs to bolster online business

  24-08-2020 13:14 via ft.com
  UK supermarket chain expects internet sales to rise by two-thirds this year to £5.5bn
  
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• Ocado ramps up investment in vertical farming as pandemic boosts interest

  24-08-2020 11:25 via chargedretail.co.uk
  
  Ocado has ramped up its investment in vertical farming as Brexit and the coronavirus pandemic are set to see the sector grow to £15 billion by 2026.
  The online grocer had increased its stake in vertical farming startup Jones Food Company from 58 per cent to 70 per cent, according to The Telegraph.
  It comes after Ocado made a £17 million investment in the vertical farming space last June, acquiring its initial stake in Jones Food Company and launching a joint venture with 80 Acre
  
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• Britain on track for record economic growth in Q3

  24-08-2020 10:46 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Consumer spending in August rose 7% year-on-year
  // ONS figures find spending rose 3.6% from June to July
  // Long term recovery likely to be closely linked to social distancing restrictions and concern over a seocnd wave of coronavirusNew data suggests Britons may be ready to spend once again after months of lockdown.
  Figures from Fable Data cited by the Financial Times said total spending (including leisure) in the first two weeks of August exceeded the same period a year earl
  
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• Mike Ashley's Frasers Group buys fitness chain DW Sports

  24-08-2020 10:27
  
  Frasers Group to pay initial £37m for ‘certain assets’, which excludes DW business nameCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageMike Ashley’s Frasers Group has acquired the gym and fitness chain DW Sports in a deal potentially worth up to £44m.DW Group, founded by the former Wigan Athletic owner Dave Whelan, fell into administration last month, putting 1,700 jobs at risk. The group operates 73 gyms and 75 shops across the UK.Marks & Spen
  
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• Rent relief row comes to a head for retailers and landlords

  24-08-2020 10:22 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // BRC calls for extension for retailer’s rent relief, “in the absence of an alternative solution”
  // BPF says a blanket moratorium will encourage “well-capitalised businesses” to hold back on rent paymentsThe British Retail Consortium (BRC) and the British Property Federation (BPF) were originally united in calling on the government for an extension on retailers’ rent relief.
  Both lobbying groups have urged the government to pay up to 50 per cent of comm
  
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• Customer who complained to M&S over racist harassment now receiving “non-stop” abusive calls

  24-08-2020 09:59 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // M&S customer alleges she received racist abuse from member of staff in Basildon, Essex store
  // Faryaal Hussain alleged she was followed into carpark by M&S employee who continued swearing
  // Hussain now says she is receiving “non-stop” abusive phone callsA customer who alleges she received racist harassment from a Marks & Spencer employee has told press that she has since been subjected to abusive phone calls.
  Faryaal Hussain said she visited M&S’s store in
  
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• Customer who complained to M&S over alleged racial harassment now receiving “non-stop” abusive calls

  24-08-2020 09:59 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // M&S customer alleges she received racist abuse from member of staff in Basildon, Essex store
  // Faryaal Hussain claims she was followed into carpark by M&S employee who continued swearing
  // Hussain now says she is receiving “non-stop” abusive phone callsA customer who alleges she received racial harassment from a Marks & Spencer employee has told press she has since been subjected to abusive phone calls.
  Faryaal Hussain said she visited M&S’s store in Basild
  
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• Frasers Group buys DW Sports out of administration for £37m

  24-08-2020 09:50 via retailgazette.co.uk
  // Frasers Group has acquired rival Dave Whelan Sports
  // Mike Ashley’s retail empire paid £37m for the sports and gym business
  // Frasers will spend up to £6.9m on stock from DW Sports gymsMike Ashley’s Frasers Group will spend £37 million acquiring competitor Dave Whelan Sports from its administrators.
  Earlier this month Frasers was reported to have offered a £30 million bid for the former Wigan Athletic owner Dave Whelan’s DW Sports, including 73 gyms
  
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• Reaching the point of no returns with Topshop

  24-08-2020 08:00
  
  It is still taking orders online but failing to deliver on customer serviceTopshop is accepting payment from shoppers and then not sending orders, not refunding returns, not responding to emails and not manning phone lines. It is continuing to take orders online but appears not to pass the items to the courier. Its score on Trustpilot is between one and two.My own order (about £100-worth of clothes) should have been collected for return on 26 June, but the courier did not turn up. It does
  
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• Covid-19 boosts demand for big UK supermarket sites

  24-08-2020 06:00 via ft.com
  Investors bidding up prices as ecommerce and the ‘weekly shop’ rehabilitate stores
  
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• Bagging a bargain: UK wine fans think outside the bottle in lockdown

  24-08-2020 01:01
  
  So called ‘bagnums’ and wine boxes enjoy sales boost as Britons minimise trips to the supermarket Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverage From so-called “bagnums” to “cardbordeaux”, bag-in-box wines have enjoyed a sales surge in the UK during lockdown as Britons opted for better value for money and fewer trips to the supermarket.The Co-op chain reported an unprecedented 300% sales uplift across its range as consumers have shopped les
  
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• Bag-in-box wines enjoy sales boost during UK coronavirus lockdown

  24-08-2020 01:01
  
  So called ‘bagnums’ and wine boxes prove popular as Britons minimise trips to the supermarket Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverage From so-called “bagnums” to “cardbordeaux”, bag-in-box wines have enjoyed a sales surge in the UK during lockdown as Britons opted for better value for money and fewer trips to the supermarket.The Co-op chain reported an unprecedented 300% sales uplift across its range as consumers have shopped less bu
  
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• Tesco to create 16,000 new jobs

  24-08-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Tesco is to create 16,000 new permanent roles to support growth in its online business. The new jobs are in addition to the 4,000 permanent roles that have... View Article
  
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• Losses narrow at Gerry Weber

  24-08-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Women’s fashion retailer Gerry Weber saw its losses narrow to €34.2 million from €144.1 million in the first half of its financial year. The company attributed... View Article
  
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• John Lewis launches Peloton concession at Oxford Street store

  24-08-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  John Lewis & Partners is teaming up with Peloton  to launch nine concessions for the interactive fitness platform in its department stores across the UK. The first Peloton concession... View Article
  
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• Frasers Group acquires Dave Whelan Sports

  24-08-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Sports Direct owner Frasers Group has acquired some of the assets of Dave Whelan Sports from its administrators for an initial sum of £37 million. The deal includes the... View Article
  
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• Footfall rises fourfold last week boosted by growth in London and the South East

  24-08-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  New data has shown UK retail footfall increased  by 4.1% last week from the previous seven day period. This compares to a rise of 0.8%  in... View Article
  
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• Foot Locker grows second quarter sales

  24-08-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Foot Locker saw its total sales increase by 17.1% to $2.08 billion in its second quarter. In addition, comparable store sales rose by 18.6% in the three... View Article
  
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