Retail news

• Business rates could rise by £1.95bn in ‘bleak picture’ for UK retail and hospitality

  18-10-2023 17:43
  
  Inflation-linked increase next year would be ‘final nail in the coffin’ for many businesses, trade bodies warnBusiness live – latest updatesHigh street shops could see their business rates bill increase by up to £1.95bn next year because the rate charged is linked to inflation.Hospitality industry leaders warned the expected rate rises would “undoubtedly be the final nail in the coffin” for many businesses which have already been squeezed by the rising costs o
  
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• Sainsbury’s silently axes consumer recycling centres

  18-10-2023 16:03 via sustainability-beat.co.uk
  
  Sainsbury’s has been removing its on-site recycling centres across the UK, as it “prioritises services that people cannot get elsewhere”.
  The Times newspaper revealed that the grocer had been quietly closing down its recycling points for items including metal glass and cans across a number of local communities, where there have been reports of missing bins since early this year.
  A spokesperson for Sainsbury’s told Sustainability Beat it was prioritising services being off
  
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• EE to start selling smart TVs, fridges and kettles in move beyond mobile roots

  18-10-2023 15:52
  
  BT-owned company to take on brands such as Amazon, Currys and Argos with move into e-commerceThe BT-owned EE is to sell smart TVs, fridges, kettles and fitness products as it looks to move beyond its roots in smartphones and enter an e-commerce market dominated by brands such as Amazon, Currys and Argos.The mobile operator, which has 25 million subscribers, is seeking to use tactics developed selling telecoms products and services to retail products in categories such as smart home security, ins
  
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• US fintech Plaid hires first chief financial officer on road to potential IPO

  18-10-2023 14:13
  Start-up appoints former Expedia CFO two years after failed sale to Visa
  
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• Adidas hikes full-year guidance boosted by strong Yeezy sales

  18-10-2023 12:20 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Adidas upped its full-year guidance as it shared better than expected earnings in a surprise Q3 results pre-release.
  The sportswear company predicts a £85m loss for the year, down from the previously forecast £382.5m loss and £595m loss it expected in February.
  The improved earnings were helped by sales of the business’s remaining Yeezy stock, after it ended its partnership with rapper Ye over his antisemitic comments.
  Shares in the retailer nudged up 4% today as a result
  
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• Grocery Gazette: Ex-Tesco exclusive brand wicked kitchen launches in Asda stores

  18-10-2023 12:00 via grocerygazette.co.uk
  
  Content brought to you by Grocery Gazette.
  Wicked Kitchen has launched in Asda stores nationwide, making plant-based foods more accessible for consumers throughout the UK.
  After launching in Tesco stores in 2018, the plant-based food brand is expanding across the UK retail market.
  Wicked Kitchen offers the largest variety of chef-crafted, animal-free products in the industry, with 150+ products launched in Tesco over the last 5 years.
  Asda now carries Wicked Kitchen’s plant-based meat prod
  
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• Cost of living Christmas: Festive economy to drop by £13bn

  18-10-2023 11:38 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  This year Christmas is set to be one of the most frugal ever, with nearly half of UK adults planning to cut their overall spend over the festive season according to fresh data.
  Research from TopCashback found Brits will be spending on average £280 less than last year, equating around £13bn less being spent by consumers compared to Christmas 2022, as the cost of living crisis and surging inflation continues.
  Among those reducing their spending, they also plan to do so by more than a q
  
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• Poundland owner Pepco unveils plans to open 400 new stores

  18-10-2023 11:23 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Pepco Group has announced plans to open 400 new stores over the next financial year, as part its refocused strategy.
  The group unveiled its “key focus areas over the near term” before its capital markets day today in Warsaw.
  Pepco Group confirmed its plans to strengthen its place in key markets and scale the company across Spain and Italy.
  The parent company also claimed it would prioritise “rebuilding the profitability” of its core business across Eastern and Central Eur
  
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• New Look completes £100m refinancing as it posts full-year loss

  18-10-2023 09:27 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  New Look has successfully completed a £100m debt refinancing deal with Wells Fargo set to help the business during a tricky trading environment after posting a full-year loss before tax despite revenues rising, Retail Week reveals.
  Revenue rose from £839.6m in 2022 to £844.7m as the fashion retailer prioritised full-price sales while the business also recorded a 67% increase in adjusted EBITDA for the full year, from £25.2m to £42.2m.
  But the business post
  
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• Cake Box trading in line with expectations as it remains ‘confident’ in growth prospects

  18-10-2023 09:18 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Cake Box has recorded trading in line with expectations in its first half with adjusted profits ahead of the same time last year.
  For the six months to 30 September, the cake maker said it expects revenues to rise by around 6% following strong like-for-like franchise store sales growth of 6.2% and a series of new shop openings.
  The business added that it benefited from the cost of raw materials remaining stable in recent months, while it also didn’t introduce any price increases in the fir
  
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• Data: Business rates to rise £1.7bn next year

  18-10-2023 09:05 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Businesses will have to find an extra £1.7 bn next year as rates bills are set to rise in line with the latest inflation increase for September, coming in at 6.7%.
  This could lead to a slower recovery and, potentially, more inflation as businesses pass on costs, with business leaders and rates experts both calling on the Government to scrap the rise as firms recover from the pandemic and face cost pressures from the decades-high levels of inflation.
  Rates bills generate around £
  
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• Sosandar to open physical stores in spring 2024 and launch overseas

  18-10-2023 08:52 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Sosandar will be opening its first set of bricks-and-mortar stores in spring 2024, calling the business ‘perfectly placed’ to develop its omnichannel strategy thanks to growing brand strength coupled with consumers increasingly shopping on the high street.
  Providing a trading update covering the six-month period ended 30 September 2023 and an update on the expansion of its omnichannel strategy, the fashion retailer said it expects revenue to grow by 10% year on year for FY24 to &poun
  
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• What Next? What the retail giant has done with its acquisitions

  18-10-2023 08:29 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Next is quickly cementing itself as one of the UK’s most prolific buyers of retail businesses after it added FatFace to its shopping basket last week.
  The retail giant revealed on Friday it had snapped up the retailer in a £115.2m takeover deal as the lifestyle brand became the latest to join the group’s growing list of retail acquisitions.
  From Joules and Reiss to Made.com and Cath Kidston, Retail Gazette takes a look at what Next has done with its previous acquisitions.
  
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• In pictures: Clarks unveils Jorja Smith collaboration

  18-10-2023 08:26 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Clarks Originals revealed its latest collaborated with British singer-songwriter Jorja Smith on the release of its Desert Nomad shoe as a mule.
  The footwear retailer’s new style features an upper made from Sciarada Evolo suede, which is more sustainable than traditional suede, and also has recycled laces.
  Subscribe to Retail Gazette for free
  Sign up here to get the latest news straight into your inbox each morning Smith was first catapulted into the limelight with her debut
  
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• Carrefour and Chinese conglomerate Suning in legal battle over China stores

  18-10-2023 03:00
  The retail network in the country has been bleeding cash and losing market share to rivals
  
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• Wild Nutrition launch in Holland & Barrett to tackle Perimenopause symptoms

  18-10-2023 02:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Experts in women’s nutritional health, Wild Nutrition, has launched in 365 Holland & Barrett stores nationwide with its range of Food-Grown® formulas, of highly digestible nutrients... View Article
  
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• Sosandar unveils plans for opening of physical stores

  18-10-2023 02:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Sosandar is to develop its omnichannel strategy with the launch of its own physical stores. The online women’s fashion retailer expects to have opened its first... View Article
  
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• New Look hails strong year despite posting loss

  18-10-2023 02:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  New Look has increased its full-year revenue to £844.7 million from £839.6 million in the prior year following a strong focus on a full-price sales. Adjusted... View Article
  
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• John Lewis Partnership unveils first product from new Made With Care brand

  18-10-2023 02:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  The John Lewis Partnership has released its first design for a new lifestyle brand collaboration created by people who’ve had experience of the care system. The... View Article
  
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• Exclusive interview: Pioneering the future of Perimenopause, Wild Nutrition

  18-10-2023 02:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  On World Menopause Day, we talk to Anna Creed, Marketing Director of Wild Nutrition, around the groundbreaking initiatives and campaigns aimed at reshaping the narrative around... View Article
  
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• Clarks collborates with Jorja Smith

  18-10-2023 02:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Clarks Originals has collaborated with British singer-songwriter Jorja Smith on the release of its Desert Nomad shoe as a mule. The new style features an upper... View Article
  
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• Cake Box trading in line with expectations

  18-10-2023 02:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Cake Box, the maker of egg free cakes, has said its trading was in line with expectations in its first half with adjusted profits ahead of... View Article
  
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