Retail news

• John Lewis submits £80m plan to turn Reading depot into rental flats

  03-09-2024 19:14
  
  Department store chain aims to build 215 homes as part of push to diversify beyond retailThe owner of John Lewis has submitted plans for the £80m development of 215 rental flats on the site of its unused Reading distribution centre – a tenth of which will be affordable.The John Lewis Partnership (JLP), which owns Waitrose supermarkets as well as its eponymous department stores, said the site would feature two garden spaces, including one for children, and shared communal spaces for f
  
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• Co-op: Levels of crime and abuse against staff at ‘highest level ever seen’

  03-09-2024 17:47 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  The Co-op is experiencing its highest-ever levels of crime and abuse in its store as shoplifting across the UK hits a 20-year high.
  The retailer’s group public affairs and board secretariat director Paul Gerrard told the House of Lord’s Justice and Home Affairs Committee that levels of crime were up by 44% in its stores and within that, violence and abuse incidents have risen 35%.
  He said: “That level of crime in our stores is 1,000 incidents every single day. That is the
  
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• Huge rise in retail crime driven by gangs, not stealing to survive, says Co-op

  03-09-2024 15:26
  Organised criminals have even used wheelie bins to clear shelves, executive from grocery chain tells peersBusiness live – latest updatesOrganised criminals are behind the recent rise in shoplifting and violence against shop workers rather than people stealing to survive, one of the UK’s largest grocery chains has told a parliamentary inquiry.Paul Gerrard, the public affairs director at the Co-op, told the House of Lords justice and home affairs committee into shoplifting that a 44% r
  
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• John Lewis submits £80m plan for 215 rental homes in Reading

  03-09-2024 14:03 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  John Lewis Partnership has submitted a planning application to build 215 rental homes in Reading as part of its property venture.
  The proposals involve transforming a former distribution warehouse into 215 energy-efficient homes, 6,000 sq ft of internal amenity space, two new external garden spaces and an “improved public realm”.
  The homes will be purpose built for renters with shared areas for fitness, home-working and socialising, and will include a mix of one, two and three-bedroo
  
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• Harrods trains staff to tackle sexual harassment amid rising crime

  03-09-2024 13:37 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Harrods has been training staff to intervene if shoppers are sexually harassed, in response to rising violence against women in public spaces.
  The luxury retailer said a policy was introduced last year for all employees to receive compulsory training on the issue, The Telegraph reported.
  Harrods now has a network of around 50 specially trained employees across various departments who are equipped to respond to allegations of harassment sensitively.
  All staff must take an online course on how to
  
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• The Very Group appoints ex-Asos boss Nick Beighton as non-exec

  03-09-2024 13:00 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  The Very Group has named former Matches and Asos boss Nick Beighton as a new non-executive director.
  The Very and Littlewoods owner said Beighton will join its board as a representative of global investment firm Carlyle, which provided £85m in funding to the group in February.
  He is joined by consultant Paul O’Donnell, who joins as a representative of international investment company IMI, the other half of the £125m funding package the retailer received earlier this year.
  Beigh
  
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• Primark launches Swap Shop pop-ups

  03-09-2024 12:10 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Primark is launching its first Swap Shop initiative for customers to exchange pre-loved and vintage clothing in its stores.
  The high street retailer has teamed up with circular clothing company Verte to put on a limited run of pop-ups this month in select stores in London, Manchester and Birmingham.
  Customers will be able to bring up to five items of adult clothing, bags, hats or scarves in good condition to be swapped for digital tokens on the Verte app, which can then be redeemed against other
  
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• Wickes opens first new store in Scotland in over ten years

  03-09-2024 11:52 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Home improvement retailer Wickes has opened its first new store in Scotland since 2013 at Arnhall Business Park in Aberdeen. The 32,000 square foot space offers a... View Article
  
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• Unlocking the power of uniforms: An interview with Ken Denny, Murray Uniforms

  03-09-2024 11:50 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  In this exclusive interview, Ken Denny, Client Relationship Manager at Murray Uniforms, shares insights into the strategic role of uniforms in business success. With over nine... View Article
  
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• Selfridges debuts Savage X Fenty shop-in-shop in new partnership

  03-09-2024 10:00 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Selfridges is launching a partnership with lingerie brand Savage X Fenty across the retailer’s Oxford Street store and online.
  The collaboration, which marks the brand’s first physical sales location in the UK, is set to “enable customers to experience IRL what has globally made Savage X Fenty so unique,” according to the intimates and loungewear company.
  Savage X Fenty SVP and GM Europe Genevieve Kunst said the collaboration was “just the beginning of a very exciti
  
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• Watches of Switzerland on track to meet full year guidance

  03-09-2024 09:53 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Watches of Switzerland is “on track” to achieve its 2025 guidance following “continued stabilisation of the UK market”.
  In a trading update this morning, the luxury retailer said trading for the first 18 weeks of the financial year has been “in line with expectations”.
  Demand for its key luxury brands “remains strong” in both the UK and US markets, “outstripping supply, with consistent additions and conversions”.
  The business noted it h
  
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• Ultimate Products appoints new non-executive directors

  03-09-2024 09:31 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Ultimate Products, the owner of the Salter and Beldray homeware brands, has appointed Andrew Milne and José Carlos González-Hurtado as non-executive directors. With the appointments due... View Article
  
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• Who is Ted Baker’s new UK operator, United Legwear and Apparel?

  03-09-2024 09:20 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Ted Baker owner Authentic revealed last week it had struck a deal with its US partner to run the brand’s online operations across the UK and Europe, after its final stores closed earlier this month.
  The parent company confirmed it was extending its partnership with United Legwear and Apparel (ULAC) to relaunch the British label this autumn after talks with Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group to take on the business fell through.
  It comes after Ted Baker’s UK operator No Ordinary Design
  
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• Watches of Switzerland Group on track to meet full year guidance

  03-09-2024 09:10 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Watches of Switzerland Group has said it remains confident of delivering its full year guidance after trading in the first 18 weeks was in line with... View Article
  
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• Advanced Safety Measures: Gunshot Detection Systems in Retail Environments

  03-09-2024 08:43 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  As retail spaces evolve into multifunctional hubs combining shopping, dining, and entertainment, the imperative for enhanced security measures grows more pronounced. In the UK, where bustling... View Article
  
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• Aldi in planning reform talks with government to boost store openings

  03-09-2024 08:33 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Aldi is in talks with the government over planning reform in a bid to speed up its new store openings.
  The discounter is offering investment to tackle “under-resourcing” across local authorities, which is currently leading the planning application process to take more than a year, The Grocer reported.
  Aldi UK’s national real estate director George Brown said he had visited No 10 last week in a LinkedIn post.
  The executive said: “It was a pleasure to be invited to No 10 to
  
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• Aldi engages in planning reform talks with government to boost store openings

  03-09-2024 08:33 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Aldi is engaged in talks with the government over planning reform in a bid to speed up its new store openings.
  The discount supermarket is offering investment to tackle “under-resourcing” across local authorities, which is currently leading the planning application process to take more than a year, The Grocer reported. 
  Aldi UK’s national real estate director George Brown revealed he had visited No 10 last week in a LinkedIn post.
  The executive said: “It was a pleasu
  
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• Asda makes millions available to primary schools with industry first loyalty programme giveaway

  03-09-2024 08:23 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Asda is making millions of pounds available to UK primary schools through its Cashpot for Schools initiative by encouraging customers to use its Asda Rewards loyalty... View Article
  
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• Mango appoints new ecommerce director as it enters 12 new markets

  03-09-2024 08:14 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Mango has bolstered its online business with the appointment of Marlies Hersbach as its new ecommerce director. Previously Mango’s international retail director for France, Hersbach will be... View Article
  
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• Primark launches exclusive collaboration with costume designer Colleen Atwood

  03-09-2024 07:26 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Primark has launched an exclusive collection inspired by Warner Bros. Pictures’ Beetlejuice Beetlejuice film. In a partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery Global Consumer Products, the fashion... View Article
  
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• UK retail sales pick up as shoppers seek picnic and barbecue food

  03-09-2024 01:01
  
  Sales of clothing and gardening products also leap but furniture and household appliances continue slideWarmer weather lifted retail sales growth in the UK last month as shoppers grabbed grub for picnics and barbecues and kitted out their wardrobes with new outfits.The turnaround was driven by food and the total amount spent in shops rose 2.9% in the three months to the end of August, up from 2.6% reported the month before. Continue reading...
  
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• August heatwave boosts retail sales

  03-09-2024 01:01 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  The hot weather last month provided a small boost to August’s retail sales, despite the cost of living crisis still weighing heavily on consumer spend.
  The latest figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) show total sales rose 1% last month, against a growth of 4.1% in August 2023. This is below the 12-month average growth of 1.2%.
  Food sales rose 2.9% year on year over the three months to August, against a growth of 8.2% in August 2023 and below the 12-month average of 5.0%.
  H
  
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• UK retail sales boosted by warm weather in August, data shows

  03-09-2024 01:00
  Figures from British Retail Consortium and Barclays point to more purchases of summer clothing and barbecues
  
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• UK retail sales boosted by warm weather in August

  03-09-2024 01:00
  
  Figures from British Retail Consortium and Barclays point to more purchases of summer clothing and barbecues
  
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