Retail news

• Big Interview: Giorgio D’Aprile, Senior Marketing Director EMEA, Timberland

  12-10-2020 17:56
  “It’s been quite an interesting last four years.”
  In the time since joining Timberland as its EMEA senior marketing director in April 2016, Giorgio D’Aprile has since experienced a shift in digital retailing. This has particularly been the case in last eight months or so, thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic.
  Under his leadership, Timberland has launched more intense strategies for its ecommerce and bricks-and-mortar stores as it aims to gain more engagement with shoppers. Th
  
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• Selfridges opens Christmas shop 75 days in advance

  12-10-2020 17:14
  // Selfridges opens Christmas Shop, 75 days in advance, at its London flagship as well as online
  // It is the department store’s most sustainable and biggest Christmas collection yetSelfridges has once again become the first major retailer to launch its annual Christmas range with a dedicated a shop-in-shop at its Oxford Street flagship in London.
  With 75 days to go until Christmas Day, the retailer’s festive range is also available on its ecommerce website while a selection will als
  
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• Polish ecommerce group Allegro soars on stock market debut

  12-10-2020 15:48
  Shares jump as much as 65% in country’s biggest-ever IPO
  
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• Amazon scraps development of Crucible video game after disastrous launch

  12-10-2020 14:25
  
  Amazon has officially cancelled development of its video game Crucible after dismal reviews forced it to be pulled from public circulation.
  The retail giant’s first major foray into the lucrative video game development industry has now been scrapped entirely, as no “healthy, sustainable future” could be found for its flagship title.
  It comes after Crucible was pulled from public circulation in July following an embarrassing launch in May which drew widesprea
  
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• Aspinal of London’s CVA given approval

  12-10-2020 14:03
  // Aspinal of London’s CVA proposal given the green light by more than 75% of its creditors
  // Exact details of the CVA not yet clear, but the retailer still hasn’t re-opened its 10 stores since lockdown endedAspinal of London is set to undergo a restructure after its creditors reportedly gave the green light for its CVA to go ahead.
  According to Drapers, more than 75 per cent of the luxury retailer’s creditors voted in favour of its CVA proposal last week.
  Aspinal of Lond
  
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• Cake Box sales bounce back after lockdown closures

  12-10-2020 13:34
  // Cake Box like-for-like sales jump 12.1% in the 20 weeks to September 30
  // Total revenues for the period came in at £8.6m, dipping slightly from £8.8m
  // Cake Box’s online sales jump 81% and 6 new franchise stores opened in the half year periodCake Box has hailed “strong momentum” as it reported higher like-for-like sales after reopening stores.
  The high street business said like-for-like sales jumped 12.1 per cent in the 20 weeks to September 30 after it welcome
  
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• Dominic Chappell “utterly broke” following deal for BHS, court hears

  12-10-2020 13:11
  // Court hears Dominic Chappell’s defence for evading tax on £2.2m income received when he bought BHS from Sir Philip Green
  // Green allegedly refused to allow advisers to see all the financial materials for the deal on loss-making BHSA series of broken promises and a refusal to sell BHS to a business rival by retail tycoon Sir Philip Green plunged its new owner into a tax evasion nightmare, a jury has been told.
  Dominic Chappell, whose consortium controversially bought BHS from Gree
  
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• Co-op & Iceland workers recognised in Queen’s honours

  12-10-2020 12:42
  // Co-op workers Liz Mclean & Jean Marie Hughes awarded the BEM and MBE last weekend
  // Iceland delivery driver Adam Smith awarded the BEMTwo workers at the Co-op and another from Iceland received recognition for their response to the Covid-19 crisis and efforts to keep communities fed throughout the pandemic.
  Liz Mclean, store manager at Co-op’s Brodick store on the Isle of Arran, becomes a Medallist of the Order of the British Empire (BEM) and Jean Marie Hughes, a trade improvement a
  
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• Lidl scraps plans to launch online in the UK as it dissolves Digital Logistics arm

  12-10-2020 11:04
  
  Lidl is scrapping plans to launch into online grocery in the UK as it dissolves its digital logistics arm and pledges to focus “on our bricks-and-mortar business”.
  Lidl Digital Logistics, which the German discounter set up in 2018 to explore expanding in to online grocery, is now being officially shut down according to The Grocer.
  The news comes as the UK’s largest grocers, including Lidl’s closest rival Aldi, have scrambled to expand their online offerings during th
  
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• Kurt Geiger CEO says another 500 jobs cuts could be on the way

  12-10-2020 10:21
  // Kurt Geiger CEO Neil Clifford argues against end of tax-free shopping
  // Clifford says Kurt Geiger will cut 25% of its workforce in early 2021
  // Calls for Chancellor Rishi Sunak to instead extend tax-free shopping scheme for EU customersKurt Geiger chief executive tells Rishi Sunak the loss of tax-free shopping would be a “staggering own goal” for the nation, according to a letter sent to the chancellor and cited by Drapers.
  The up-market shoe and accessory brand’s chief ex
  
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• Poundland snaps up Fulton Foods, plans to create 1,000 new jobs

  12-10-2020 09:59
  // Poundland steps up chilled and frozen food offering with new acquisition
  // The discount retailer aims to invest £25m in next two years in expanding chilled and frozen operation
  // Set to create 1,000 new full and part time jobsPoundland has acquired frozen food specialist Fulton Foods as it looks to expand its fresh and chilled offering.
  The discount retailer said it has already been working with Fultons for 12 months on the development of a chilled and frozen food range.
  READ MORE: Po
  
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• Leicester garment workers denied £27m in earnings

  12-10-2020 09:27
  // Government is yet to respond to BRC’s call for crack down on garment factory exploitation
  // The trade association estimates workers have been denied £27 million in earnings in past three months
  // BRC’s Helen Dickinson calls for implementation of statutory licensing of UK garment factoriesThe British Retail Consortium has called on the government to do more to prevent labour exploitation in the UK’s garment industry, after it emerged workers in Leicester were den
  
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• Manchester, Sheffield and Peterborough among biggest losers of retail space

  12-10-2020 08:52
  // England and Wales lost the equivalent of 42 football pitches in retail space in the past year
  // Report suggests government’s moratorium on evictions could be delaying more losses still to comeCoronavirus lockdowns have accelerated the loss of retail space in England and Wales in the past year, according to new research by property law firm Boodle Hatfield.
  Around 300,000 square metres, the equivalent of 42 football pitches, have been lost in the past twelve months, with coronavirus loc
  
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• 'Liveable streets': how cities are prioritising people over parking

  12-10-2020 06:00
  
  Schemes to reclaim city streets for pedestrians are flourishing during the Covid-19 pandemicWhere once there was parking, now there are decks. At the start of the year, Rotterdam’s Witte de Withstraat was a car-choked thoroughfare. Today, cars are banned after 4pm, locals stroll leisurely down the middle of the road and special wooden terraces have taken the place of parking spaces.“The terraces are a fantastic solution,” says Iris Wulffraat, teh owner of Eetcafé Opa (&l
  
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• Whitepaper: Leading in Disrupted Times – A Pathway Through Uncertainty

  12-10-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  There is no Leadership Playbook to help us through this pandemic. Many of us have activated our Business Continuity Plan, but few of us ever planned... View Article
  
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• Specsavers launches ‘Something To Smile About’ advertising campaign

  12-10-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Specsavers is launching a new integrated campaign called Something To Smile About. Making its debut on ITV on 12 October in a break during Coronation Street, the... View Article
  
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• Sainsbury’s partners with Kibsons in the UAE

  12-10-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Sainsbury’s has embarked on an exclusive partnership with online grocer Kibsons to enable it introduce its products to shoppers in the UAE. An award-winning family run... View Article
  
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• Poundland acquires Fultons Foods

  12-10-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Poundland has acquired north of England based frozen food retailer Fultons Foods. The discount retailer said the move will help accelerate its transformation plans. Poundland has... View Article
  
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• Mamas & Papas to expand concession presence with Next

  12-10-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Nursery brand Mamas & Papas is expanding its Next concession presence with two new openings at Manchester Arndale and Next Home at the Meadowhall shopping centre.... View Article
  
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• ARKET to open first store in Korea

  12-10-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  ARKET is to continue its expansion in Asia with the opening of its first store in Korea. Due to launch in 2021, the bricks-and-mortar shop in... View Article
  
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