Retail news

• ‘The Hermès Game’: how the luxury house is defying the slowdown

  02-11-2023 21:15
  Tightly controlled production and premium positioning is helping maker of Birkin and Kelly bags outshine rivals
  
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• Watch: Lidl Christmas ad tells heartwarming raccoon tale

  02-11-2023 19:28 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Lidl has taken a leaf out of John Lewis’ book as it unveiled a heartwarming Christmas ad featuring a brave raccoon.
  The advert, which premieres during Emmerdale tonight, tells the story of an adorable raccoon who goes above and beyond to make one little boy’s day extra special. It begins with the raccoon looking curiously through a window to see a family excitedly decorating a Christmas tree, when the family dog accidentally smashes the little boy’s favourite monkey Christ
  
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• Amazon earned $1bn from secret pricing algorithm, FTC alleges

  02-11-2023 18:43
  Regulator reveals new details about allegations at centre of antitrust challenge
  
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• WH Smith launches buy-back scheme for secondhand books

  02-11-2023 17:00
  
  Customers will be able to trade their used books for a voucher to spend in store or online – but industry figures warn the scheme may be ‘too good to be true’WH Smith has launched a buy-back service for used books, offering readers vouchers in exchange for their secondhand volumes.Through the BookCycle scheme, launched on Tuesday, readers register their books online, take them to a branch and receive an e-voucher to spend in store or online. The books will be “passed on f
  
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• UK supermarkets: market share gains invite ‘Tescopoly’ comparison

  02-11-2023 16:53
  Competitors of Sainsbury’s and Tesco are struggling with highly leveraged balance sheets
  
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• Food retailers enlist celebrities as Christmas ad rivalry moves online

  02-11-2023 14:43
  
  Marks & Spencer signs up Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney while Waitrose hires Graham Norton as shops vie for digital influenceFood retailers have recruited an army of celebrities with internet clout for their festive advertising campaigns as they battle for digital influence this Christmas and try to tap into a burgeoning market for partying at home.Marks & Spencer has signed up Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, the US actors whose purchase of Wrexham AFC and accompanying Disney+ docume
  
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• PrettyLittleThing founder eyes bid for TopShop

  02-11-2023 13:35 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  PrettyLittleThing founder Umar Kamani has pledged to buy TopShop and “bring it back like the good old days” following reports that its owner Asos was weighing up a sale.
  Kamani, who stepped down as the fast fashion retailer’s chief executive in April, flagged his interest in the brand on X – formerly Twitter – today.
  It comes as reports emerged late last week that Asos was in talks with Ted Baker owner Authentic Brands Group about the possible sale of its Topshop br
  
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• John Lewis kicks off Black Friday sale ‘earlier than ever’

  02-11-2023 12:39 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  John Lewis has launched its Black Friday sale “earlier than ever” as more consumers begin preparing for Christmas in November.
  The department store has unveiled hundreds of offers in-store and online spanning across beauty, fashion, home and tech throughout the whole of November.
  The retailer has also extended its returns period, giving customers who buy between now and 24 December until 23 January to return or exchange their purchases.Subscribe to Retail Gazette for free
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• Sainsbury’s declares it is winning back Lidl and Aldi customers

  02-11-2023 12:26
  
  CEO says firm making record gains in market share after passing on savings to shoppers with discounted groceriesBusiness live – latest updatesSainsbury’s says it is winning back sales from discounters Aldi and Lidl for the first time, after slowing food inflation helped it increase the amount of items sold across the business.The supermarket said it was on track to deliver full-year profits at the upper end of expectations, but pre-tax profits dived by 27% to £275m in the six m
  
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• Sainsbury’s says annual profit will hit upper end of forecast

  02-11-2023 12:18
  Grocery sales jumped a tenth in first half of year as chain claims it is winning share from discounters
  
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• UN decries Amazon, Walmart, DoorDash for ‘shameful’ wages and union-busting

  02-11-2023 12:00
  
  Human rights expert says US companies trap workers in poverty, forcing them to rely on food stamps and MedicaidThe UN special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights has called on the CEOs of Amazon, Walmart and DoorDash and the US government to address allegations that top US corporations pay such low wages that they trap workers in poverty, forcing them to rely on government-assistance programs to survive.Olivier De Schutter has written to the three major US corporations and the US gove
  
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• UN blasts Amazon, Walmart, DoorDash for ‘shameful’ wages and union-busting

  02-11-2023 12:00
  
  Human rights expert says US companies trap workers in poverty, forcing them to rely on food stamps and MedicaidThe UN special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights has called on the CEOs of Amazon, Walmart and DoorDash and the US government to address allegations that top US corporations pay such low wages that they trap workers in poverty, forcing them to rely on government-assistance programs to survive.Olivier De Schutter has written to the three major US corporations and the US gove
  
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• Morrisons boss David Potts: The worst of price rises is over

  02-11-2023 09:52 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Outgoing Morrisons boss David Potts has said the worst of food inflation is behind us but warned that vegetables were likely to surge in price ahead of Christmas.
  The chief executive told Sky News that he was anticipating a 4% to 6% increase in some prices the run-up to the holidays.
  He said that certain products would become more expensive at a faster pace, such as vegetables and salad items.Subscribe to Retail Gazette for free
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• Watch: M&S Food unveils Christmas ad starring Ryan Reynolds

  02-11-2023 09:49 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  M&S Food is bringing back its festive fairy, voiced by Dawn French, who this year is joined by two sidekicks, Hollywood actors and Wrexham football club owner Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.
  The pair will voice The Mittens, named Left and Right, in what M&S terms a six-part blockbuster ad series.After The Mittens get separated from their owner Lilly, The Fairy tries to cheer them up by introducing them to the “magic of an M&S Christmas”.
  The trio discover the very best
  
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• Retail’s annual tech investment gap could top £22bn, creating an innovation vacuum that risks sector health and business survival, warns the Retail Think Tank’s latest whitepaper

  02-11-2023 09:32
  26 OCTOBER 2023 — London, UK – Annually, retail faces a potential sector-wide tech investment gap of up to £22billion, warns the KPMG/RetailNext Retail Think Tank (RTT), an independent board of retail experts. This blackhole of tech investment is creating an innovation vacuum which not only threatens retail performance, but also risks long term sector health and business survival, according to the RTT’s latest quarterly whitepaper.The RTT whitepaper – ‘Ch
  
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• Asos to close Staffordshire warehouse after cost-cutting drive

  02-11-2023 09:20 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Asos is to close its Midlands warehouse just two years after opening as it looks to cut costs in its hunt to improve profitability.
  The online retail giant said it would shutter its fulfilment centre in Lichfield, Staffordshire, despite having invested £90m to fully automate the site.
  The warehouse has more than 700 employees, however they do not directly work for the fashion retailer.Subscribe to Retail Gazette for free
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• Sainsbury’s to hit top half of profit guidance as focus on food pays off

  02-11-2023 09:06 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Sainsbury’s expects to hit the top half of its profit guidance for the year, as its focus on food pays off.
  The supermarket predicts it will make between £670m and £700m for the year, despite underlying pre-tax profits remaining flat at £340m for the half to 16 September.
  However, on a statutory basis the retailer’s profits fell 27% for the half year.
  Grocery sales shot up more than 10% as volume growth across both quarters drove record market share gains for the bu
  
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• Christmas shopping to start earlier and homemade gifts on the rise, says John Lewis

  02-11-2023 07:47 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  A fifth of Britons start their Christmas planning in November, according to John Lewis’s report into changing festive habits.
  The department store’s commercial director Kathleen Mitchell said the trend is driven by both shoppers getting excited for the festive season and trying to spread costs.
  “While we see a spike in searches for Christmas trees immediately after the summer holidays, people begin shopping in earnest on 10 November – a 45-day run-up to the big event,&rdq
  
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• Coles subjecting employees to bag checks in crackdown on some of Australia’s lowest paid workers

  02-11-2023 06:37
  
  Staff who refuse can be fired according to the supermarket chain’s policy, as workers in Victoria prepare to strike on Friday Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastColes is subjecting staff to bag checks at the end of their shifts in a crackdown on grocery theft targeting some of Australia’s lowest paid workers.The bag check policy, which has been tightened as food prices surge, requires employee
  
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• Zalando posts improved EBIT despite revenue decline

  02-11-2023 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Zalando has posted a 72% increase in adjusted group EBIT to €23.2 million following reduced logistics costs in its third quarter. However, revenue and gross merchandise... View Article
  
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• Superdrug launches Black Friday early for Health & Beautycard members

  02-11-2023 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Superdrug has launched its Black Friday offers early for its Health & Beautycard members. The retailer has given members exclusive access to Black Friday deals due... View Article
  
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• Sainsbury’s confident on full year profit

  02-11-2023 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Sainsbury’s expects to report a full year underlying pre-tax profit of between £670 million and £700 million, which is in the upper half of its previous... View Article
  
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• Cornish Bakery chooses Harrogate for 58th location

  02-11-2023 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Cornish Bakery is continuing its rapid expansion with the opening of a new branch in the Victorian spa town of Harrogate. Situated on James Street, the... View Article
  
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• Comment: What next for Next?

  02-11-2023 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  It might be a good few years since I interviewed the chairman of Next, David Wolfson, but I can clearly remember the conversation, which related to... View Article
  
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• Castore pushes forward with expansion drive

  02-11-2023 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Premium sportswear brand Castore is continuing to expand with new store openings in the UK, Ireland and the Middle East. Founded in 2015 by Wirral-based brothers... View Article
  
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• Ascensos and John Lewis partner to elevate customer contact services

  02-11-2023 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  John Lewis & Partners has entered a five-year contract with Scottish headquartered Ascensos, which will provide the retailer’s shoppers with access to flexible, customer-focused, and experienced... View Article
  
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• 5 hidden secrets of retail POS

  02-11-2023 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  While the primary function of a POS system is to process a transaction, an efficient solution is actually capable of so much more. A POS system... View Article
  
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