Retail news

• Directors’ Deals: JD Sports chair raises stake on optimistic outlook

  20-01-2023 19:00
  Retailer expects to make £1bn profit for the first time next year
  
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• Waterstones profits rise as shoppers return to bookshops

  20-01-2023 17:52 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  // Waterstones posts rise in profits thanks to return of in-store customers
  // The bookseller posted a £42.1m profit after tax for the year ending April 2022, up from £2.9m in 2020/21Waterstones full-year profits have soared as customers returned to bookshops after Covid restrictions eased.
  For the financial year ending April 2022, the bookseller posted a £42.1m profit after tax, an increase from £2.9m in 2020/21 and £19.7m in 2019/20.
  Sales surged 73% to £399
  
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• Waterstones profits rise as Brits return to bookshops

  20-01-2023 17:52 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  // Waterstones posts rise in profits thanks to return of in-store customers
  // The bookseller posted a £42.1m profit after tax for the year ending April 2022, up from £2.9m in 2020/21Waterstones full-year profits have soared as customers returned to bookshops.
  For the financial year ending April 2022, the bookseller posted a £42.1m profit after tax, an increase from £2.9m in 2020/21 and £19.7m in 2019/20.
  Annual sales increased to £399.8m from £230.9m in
  
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• Jigsaw expands circular service with new repair scheme pop-up

  20-01-2023 16:58 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  // Jigsaw expands “Jigsaw Forever” scheme with rental service My Wardrobe HQ
  // The retailer’s new repair service will be available from later this month in its Kensington high street storeJigsaw has expanded its “Jigsaw Forever” scheme with rental service My Wardrobe HQ by launching a repair scheme and opening a pop-up in London.
  The retailer said its new repair service will be available from later this month at its Kensington high street store.
  The service wi
  
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• Interview: How eBay and Love Island’s preloved push is turning shoppers heads

  20-01-2023 16:52 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  ITV reality show Love Island used to be synonymous with fast fashion.
  From its inception, the show partnered with the likes of Missguided and I Saw It First and you could expect the contestants to strike lucrative deals with Boohoo, In The Style and the like when they left the show.
  Former Islander Molly May Hague has even become the creative director of PrettyLittleThing.
  However, last year Love Island decided to couple up with a new, somewhat unexpected sponsor – online marketplace eBay.
  
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• Make 2023 Your Retail Year

  20-01-2023 16:25 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Increase your revenue, decrease your labor cost, and grow customer retention…With the EASY SHOPPER.
  READ MORE: https://page.advantech.com/advantech-ise-2023
  
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• Hunter in talks for fresh cash injection

  20-01-2023 16:22 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  // Hunter is currently in talks to secure new funding just three years after it secured a £16.5 million rescue deal
  // The boots retailer has brought in AlixPartners with the hopes of securing a deal in the coming weeksHunter Boot has begun working with advisory firm AlixPartners in a race to find new financial backers.
  The footwear retailer is understood to have brought in the advisors to run an accelerated sale process with the hope of securing a deal in the coming weeks, Sky N
  
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• In The Style widens losses as Christmas sales plummet 22%

  20-01-2023 15:12 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  // In The Style sales dropped 22% in the three months to 31 December forcing the retailer widen its losses
  // The group now expect to report an adjusted EBITA loss of between £4.25m and £4.75mIn The Style sales plummeted 22% over the golden quarter, forcing the retailer to widen its losses projection for the financial year.
  The online retailer blamed high levels of markdowns and disruption to delivery for the “difficult” trading environment in December.
  Direct-to-con
  
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• January blues sets in as consumer confidence falls

  20-01-2023 14:50 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  // Consumer confidence shows little signs of improvement as it drops to near-historic lows
  // GfK’s UK consumer confidence index fell 2 points in January to -45, only four points away to the historic low of -49 recorded in September 2022Consumer confidence shows no signs of improvement as it dropped to a near-historic lows, with shoppers experiencing a “New Year hangover of the economic kind”.
  GfK’s UK consumer confidence index slipped two points in January to -45, o
  
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• The Works posts ‘disappointing’ online sales over Christmas

  20-01-2023 13:20 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  // The Works posts higher sales over the festive period but shares tumble
  // The share drop comes as the retailer records “disappointing” online salesThe Works has reported higher sales over the festive period but saw shares drop after a “disappointing” online performance.
  The stationery and books retailer said shares tumbled as much as 20% in early trading after “online sales softened in the run up to Christmas”.
  The drop in online sales for the 11 weeks
  
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• Nisa boss: Independent retailers face most ‘challenging’ six months in 30 years

  20-01-2023 13:05 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  // READ MORE ON GROCERY GAZETTEThe managing director of Nisa, Peter Batt, has warned that independent retailers will face the toughest six months in 30 years.
  In a video interview with property agent Christie & Co, the symbol group retailer boss warned a “choppy six months ahead” for the industry.
  “It’s all cyclical; I do believe that in 2024 we will be in a much better position, but that doesn’t help people in 2023,” Batt said.
  Read more on Groc
  
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• Retail sales volumes fall for ninth consecutive month

  20-01-2023 11:16 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  // Retail sales volumes dropped for the ninth consecutive month as shoppers continue to rein in spending
  // Volumes shrunk 6.1% in December year on year as sales surged 3.3%, data from ONS revealsRetail sales volumes have fallen on last year for the ninth consecutive month as shoppers cut back on spending amid the cost-of-living crisis.
  Sales volumes excluding fuel shrunk 6.1% year on year in December, however price rises helped drive values up 3.3%, according to the ONS.
  The latest figures
  
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• Retail sales fall for ninth consecutive month

  20-01-2023 11:16 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  // Retail sales volumes dropped for the ninth consecutive month as shoppers continue to rein in spending
  // Volumes shrunk 6.1% in December year on year as sales surged 3.3%, data from ONS revealsRetail sales volumes have fallen on last year for the ninth consecutive month as shoppers cut back on spending amid the cost-of-living crisis.
  Sales volumes excluding fuel shrunk 6.1% year on year in December, however price rises helped drive values up 3.3%, according to the ONS.
  The latest figures
  
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• Seraphine to be taken private for 10% of IPO price

  20-01-2023 11:09 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  // Seraphine has agreed to be taken private by its major shareholder Mayfair Equity Partners
  // The deal is a 90% discount of the maternity retailer’s initial public offering price from 18 months agoSeraphine is to be taken private by its largest shareholder in a deal, which will see its value drop to 10% of its IPO price.
  The maternity retailer has agreed to a 30p-a-share offer, equating to £15.3m, with Mayfair Equity Partners for the remaining shares that it does not own.
  If t
  
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• Retail sales in Great Britain fall as shoppers rein in festive spending

  20-01-2023 10:09
  
  Surprise December drop a result of cost of living crisis forcing people to cut budgets in run-up to ChristmasRetail sales in Great Britain unexpectedly fell by 1% last month as the cost of living crisis forced households to cut back on spending in the run-up to Christmas.The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the surprise decline in sales volumes – economists had forecast a rise of 0.5% – was down to factors including the rampant increases in food prices, while online sales fe
  
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• Hotel Chocolat to make fewer Easter Eggs as it ‘plays cautious’

  20-01-2023 09:33 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  // Hotel Chocolat to produce fewer Easter eggs amid the cost-of-living crisis
  // The retailer aims to sell out of products rather than have any excess to discount after EasterHotel Chocolat will produce fewer Easter eggs this year as it exercises caution amid squeezed consumer spending.
  The chocolate retailer told The Telegraph it has opted to “play cautious” this year.
  Hotel Chocolat co-founder and chief executive Angus Thirlwell said: “We just don’t know what’s ar
  
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• Superdrug hails ‘tremendous’ Christmas as like-for-likes jump 16%

  20-01-2023 09:15 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  // Superdrug boss Peter Macnab hailed a “tremendous” Christmas at the health and beauty retailer
  // Like-for-likes surged during the 5 weeks to 31 DecemberSuperdrug celebrated a “tremendous” Christmas as like-for-likes jumped 16% on the back of customers returning to stores.
  The retailer, which has more than 800 UK stores, said footfall was higher in December and weekly transactions were 19% above 2021. It had its best trading week ever in the week before Christmas.
  Super
  
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• British retail sales drop unexpectedly in December

  20-01-2023 08:34
  Sales volumes fall 1% over crucial Christmas shopping period
  
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• Lloyds Pharmacy to close all Sainsbury’s outlets, 2,000 jobs at risk

  20-01-2023 08:26 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  // Lloyds Pharmacy will close 237 branches inside Sainsbury’s stores over the year
  // The pharmacy says the move is down to “changing market conditions”Lloyds Pharmacy is to close all of its branches inside Sainsbury’s stores, which puts 2,000 jobs on the line.
  It will close the 237 outlets over the course of the year in response to “changing market conditions”.
  The company said it was “working with colleagues potentially affected by the changes and has
  
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• Waterstones profits soar as shoppers head back to shops

  20-01-2023 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  National High Street Bookseller Waterstones have recorded soaring full-year profits as customers returned to bookshops after Covid restrictions eased. For the financial year ending April 2022,... View Article
  
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• Up to 400 jobs affected as Co-op shuts distribution operation

  20-01-2023 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Central England Co-op has announced plans to close three warehouses and a garage, saying workers will be offered other jobs within the business. The society said... View Article
  
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• The Works hails “resilient” performance

  20-01-2023 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  The Works has seen a strengthening in trade since the end of its first half with like-for-like sales increasing by 5.7% in the 11 weeks ended... View Article
  
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• L’Oreal invests in Digital Village

  20-01-2023 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  L’Oréal has made a minority investment in the Digital Village metaverse platform and NFT marketplace through its corporate venture capital fund, BOLD. Founded in 2021 by... View Article
  
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• Eve & Ranshaw to cease trading after 240 years

  20-01-2023 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  One of the UK’s oldest department stores has announced it is closing its doors because of “challenging times” after trading for more than 240 years. The independent... View Article
  
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• Drest hires Henri Holm as chief financial officer

  20-01-2023 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Drest, the luxury fashion mobile game, has appointed Henri Holm as its new chief financial officer. With 20 years of international experience in the games industry,... View Article
  
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• Consumer confidence declines in January

  20-01-2023 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Consumer confidence has dropped in January as it continues to bump along at near-record lows. According to GfK, its long-running Consumer Confidence Index has fallen by... View Article
  
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• Argos to close all stores in Ireland

  20-01-2023 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Argos is to close all of its stores in the Republic Ireland this summer. The move follows a strategic review of the retailer’s business and operations... View Article
  
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• 5 B2B eCommerce Trends and Predictions for Retail in 2023

  20-01-2023 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  As the world continues to adapt to the challenges and changes brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses in the B2B ecommerce space are looking ahead... View Article
  
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