Retail news

• Tesco chief customer officer Alessandra Bellini steps down

  20-09-2023 17:19 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Tesco chief customer officer Alessandra Bellini has quit the business after nearly seven years.
  Bellini, who joined in March 2017, will leave the supermarket chain at the end of the month, Retail Week reported.
  Her departure will see the grocer’s customer and product teams fall under the leadership of chief commercial officer Ashwin Prasad, instead of a like-for-like replacement hired.
  In an email sent to staff, chief executive Ken Murphy said: “Ale has made an immense contribution t
  
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• TikTok shop unveils new “refurbished technology” category for shoppers

  20-09-2023 17:03 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  TikTok shop has launched a new “refurbished technology” product category on its platform, where users can buy second-hand mobile phones and tablets.
  Shoppers can purchase refurbished technology products from merchants including eFones, Box.co.uk, and Yoltso on the shop.
  According to TikTok, the shop is working with software companies including Blackbelt Defence and PhoneCheck to ensure customers can buy products knowing each item has passed rigorous testing, quality control and has r
  
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• The Lex Newsletter: TikTok wants to be Amazon for Gen Z

  20-09-2023 13:30
  Social media group is branching out into ecommerce but the US is not the only country with concerns about the app
  
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• Retailers urge police to investigate all intimidation and assault reports

  20-09-2023 12:40 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Shop owners have warned shoplifters are avoiding justice due to police not appearing at crime scenes once criminals have fled, the Times reports.
  Independent retail companies have urged police and crime commissioners across England and Wales to investigate every report of assault and intimidation.
  In an open letter, they explain retailers “often see scenarios where violence against shopworkers is not responded to by the police because incidents do not meet forces’ threat, harm and ri
  
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• Poundland relaunches website after digital overhaul

  20-09-2023 11:32 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Poundland has relaunched its website following an overhaul of its digital operations and rebrand of its Poundshop.com business.
  Customers will now be able to shop more than 3,000 products online at poundland.co.uk and have orders delivered “for as little as £1”.
  The discount retailer said the launch was “made possible by the digital migration of its Poundshop.com operation and the opening of a second digital fulfilment hub at its distribution centre in Darton, south Yorks
  
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• Secret Sales snaps up Spanish etailer Dreivip

  20-09-2023 10:58 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Secret Sales has acquired Spanish online fashion retailer Dreivip, as the brand expands further into Europe.
  The move forms the start of a merger and acquisition strategy for the discounter after it recently expanded into the Netherlands and Belgium.
  Purchasing Dreivip, which has 2.7m members in Spain, will give brands and retailers immediate access to a host of new clothes shoppers.
  Dreivip will continue trading as normal until a new co-branded website goes live in October.
  The website will ini
  
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• Poeticgem Group snaps up Little Mistress

  20-09-2023 09:22 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Poeticgem Group has bought the brand IP of womenswear retailer Little Mistress, Drapers reports.
  Poeticgem will own various brands under the Little Mistress group under the terms of the agreement, and will also design, source and distribute the Little Mistress portfolio of brands worldwide.
  Little Mistress chief executive and founder Mark Ashton is set to join Poeticgem Group and will continue to be responsible for driving the brand under a new trading name of Moda & Beyond within the P
  
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• Little Mistress snapped up by fashion supplier Poeticgem Group

  20-09-2023 09:22 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Womenswear brand Little Mistress has been snapped up by fashion supplier Poeticgem Group.
  Poeticgem Group has bought the brand IP of the womenswear retailer, Drapers reports.
  Poeticgem will own various brands under the Little Mistress group under the terms of the agreement, and will also design, source and distribute the Little Mistress portfolio of brands worldwide.
  Little Mistress chief executive and founder Mark Ashton is set to join Poeticgem Group and will continue to be responsible fo
  
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• UK inflation falls unexpectedly thanks to slowing food prices

  20-09-2023 09:12 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Official figures show slowing food prices were behind a surprise fall in inflation in August, with the cost of living now at its lowest level in a year and a half.
  Price rises for milk, cheese and eggs slowed the most, while fish and vegetable prices also eased.
  The Consumer Prices Index, which tracks annual price changes, showed that inflation fell to 6.7% in August, down from July’s 6.8%. It is the third month in a row that the figure has dropped.
  This percentage is lower than the e
  
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• Dunelm posts record revenues despite profit dip

  20-09-2023 08:51 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Dunelm expects higher sales volumes to drive profits next year, as its sales grew by 5.5% to a record £1.64bn.
  In its preliminary results for the 52 weeks to July 1, 2023, the homewares retailer posted a 7.8% drop in profit before tax to £192.7m, which it blamed on the tightening on operational controls and the impact of cost inflation.
  Nonetheless, profits managed to beat average analyst expectations of approximately £188m.
  Despite “unpredictable” consumer behaviou
  
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• Dunelm posts record revenues as cost reductions pay off despite profit dip

  20-09-2023 08:51 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Dunelm has said it expects higher sales volumes to drive profits next year, as its annual profit beat analysts’ expectations for profit.
  In its preliminary results for the 52 weeks to July 1, 2023, it posted record revenues after total sales jumped 5.5% to £1.63bn, despite the homewares retailer posting a 7.8% drop in profit before tax to £192.7m, which it blamed on the tightening on operational controls and the impact of cost inflation for the dip.
  Despite “unpredictable
  
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• Wilko: Ex-boss faces pressure to explain family’s plan for pension fund shortfall

  20-09-2023 08:33 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  GMB Union, which represents Wilko staff, is urging Members of Parliament to question Lisa Wilkinson about her family’s plans for plugging the substantial pension fund shortfall of the discount retailer, which received nearly £100m in dividends during the decade leading up to its collapse.According to the Times, GMB union national officer Nadine Houghton has called on the business and trade committee to bring her in to give evidence.
  “She must explain why there is a £56 mi
  
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• WhatsApp launches in-chat payments service for businesses in India

  20-09-2023 07:45
  Parent company Meta seeks to tap its messaging service’s biggest market to boost revenue
  
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• Interview: How ex-JD man Barry Bown is growing Footasylum’s footprint – and its brand

  20-09-2023 07:00 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Footasylum is about to step into one of its most high-profile stores to date this week when its Oxford Street flagship opens.
  The 20,000 sq ft flagship will not only offer visitors an “incredible shopping experience”, but will be a brand-building store, according to chair Barry Bown.
  “The new flagship store will take the Footasylum brand, which is all about ‘defying ordinary’, to the next level.”
  Bown is promising big things from the store, which opens to
  
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• Revealed: The best retailers for work wellbeing

  20-09-2023 06:00 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  The Entertainer, The Body Shop, and Clarks have been named as the top retailers for work wellbeing by employment website Indeed.
  The brand’s Better Work Awards, which this year focuses on the top companies for work wellbeing, are based on the world’s largest study of the category, as well as insights from workers who rate and review their employer on Indeed each year.
  The companies are ranked by a score out of 100, with the winners determined based on how they fared over the past yea
  
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• The People in Retail Awards to unveil winners for Retail’s finest

  20-09-2023 02:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Just one day to go and The Retail Bulletin will announce the highly anticipated winners for the prestigious People in Retail Awards (PIRA) 2023. The People... View Article
  
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• Q&A: Kristin Naragon, Chief Strategy and Marketing Officer, Akeneo 

  20-09-2023 02:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Akeneo is the product experience (PX) company, enabling organisations to build and deliver world-class product experiences across every customer touchpoint through a comprehensive PX Strategy, powered... View Article
  
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• Ocado posts third quarter sales growth

  20-09-2023 02:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Ocado Retail saw its retail revenue climb by 7.2% to £569.6 million in its third quarter. This followed growth of 5% in the online grocer’s first... View Article
  
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• Nails.INC interview: Collabs, creativity and that cheese-scented sellout nail polish

  20-09-2023 02:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Thea Green MBE is the founder and CEO of Nails.INC – she is taking part in a fireside keynote at Brand Licensing Europe on Thursday 6... View Article
  
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• Moonpig maintains guidance despite difficult trading conditions

  20-09-2023 02:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Moonpig, the online greeting card and gifting platform, has reiterated its full-year guidance despite difficult trading conditions.  In a statement ahead of its AGM, the retailer... View Article
  
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• Little Mistress acquired by Poeticgem Group

  20-09-2023 02:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Poeticgem Group has acquired the brand IP of the Little Mistress fashion brand. Under the agreement, the retail design and sourcing solutions company will own various... View Article
  
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• Dunelm posts record sales as it focuses on offering value to customers

  20-09-2023 02:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Homewares retailer Dunelm grew its sales by 5.5% to a record £1.64 billion in the year to 1 July as it focused on offering value to... View Article
  
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• Comment: Don’t turn the page on catalogues

  20-09-2023 02:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Freemans has finally succumbed to ditching its printed catalogue after almost 120 years, which follows Argos who abandoned its big book in 2021 after nearly 50... View Article
  
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• All change: What’s driving sales right now

  20-09-2023 02:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  How the dynamics of enticing consumers to buy are changing – By Kelly Whitwick, GfK The GfK Point of Sale data for Tech and Durables for... View Article
  
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• Iceland slashes prices on 1000 ‘weekly shop’ items

  20-09-2023 01:01 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Iceland has doubled the volume of price-slashed ‘weekly shop’ items to over 1,000 products, marking the highest number of price cut grocery and household items by any UK supermarket this year.
  The reductions form part of the frozen food retailer’s commitment to lowering prices by investing £26m annually to support families amid the cost-of-living crisis.
  Reduced items include weekly shop essentials such as Lurpak Lighter Spreadable Butter (400g, was £4.00, now &poun
  
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