Retail news

• Tough luxury market dims Dior’s shine

  18-10-2024 19:00 via ft.com
  
  Sales stutter at LVMH brand run by Bernard Arnault’s daughter Delphine as luxury downturn deepens
  
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• UK firms in ‘significant financial distress’ hits record levels; Gold rises over $2,700/ounce – as it happened

  18-10-2024 17:02
  “Toxic effect of high inflation” is hurting businesses, reports Begbies TraynorUK companies are cutting back on hiring due to economic uncertainty, new data this morning shows.The Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC) has reported that the number of job vacancy adverts dropped below 1.6m last month, for the first time in two years.“A fall in new job ads is symptomatic of a wait-and-see approach some employers are taking as they wait for more from the government aroun
  
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• N Brown to cut 100 head office jobs amid Alliance buyout

  18-10-2024 16:49 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  N Brown Group is set to axe more than 100 roles at its Manchester headquarters as it prepares to be taken private by the Alliance family.
  A consultation process involving around 200 staff at its Manchester head office in the Northern Quarter is understood to have began last month, Drapers reported.
  The Jacamo and Simply Be owner, which employs 1,561 staff, confirmed the consultation will lead to 105 job cuts including 98 in its head office and seven within its supply chain hub, with affected emp
  
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• Boohoo boss to step down as review launched that could spark breakup

  18-10-2024 15:35
  
  John Lyttle to stay as CEO of fashion group, which includes Debenhams and Karen Millen, until successor foundBoohoo’s chief executive is stepping down as the online fashion retailer launches a strategic review of its brands, which include Debenhams, Karen Millen and PrettyLittleThing, that could result in a breakup of the company.Shares in Boohoo fell 7% on Friday as investors reacted to news of the surprise departure of John Lyttle, who joined from Primark in 2019 and has agreed to remain
  
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• Most of Bella Freud’s Marks & Spencer collection sells out in a day

  18-10-2024 15:16
  Retailer says designer’s 27-piece collaboration, launched on Thursday, will not be restockedMarks & Spencer launched its much-anticipated collaboration with Bella Freud on Thursday, with fans quickly buying up items from the 27-piece collection.By lunchtime, coveted items such as the pleated pinstripe skirt had been bought in most sizes from the website, and by Friday morning the majority of the items had sold out in most sizes online. The retailer says the collection will not be resto
  
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• Bella Freud’s Marks & Spencer collection sells out in a day

  18-10-2024 15:16
  Designer’s 27-piece collaboration launched on Thursday, was gone on Friday and will not be restockedMarks & Spencer launched its much-anticipated collaboration with Bella Freud on Thursday, with fans quickly buying up items from the 27-piece collection.By lunchtime, coveted items such as the pleated pinstripe skirt had been bought in most sizes from the website, and by Friday morning the majority of the items had sold out in most sizes online. The retailer says the collection will not
  
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• This couple has re-created the sights and smells of a Senegalese market in Brooklyn: ‘Experiences keep people coming back’

  18-10-2024 15:00
  
  The Rue Dix marketplace and restaurant in Crown Heights offers Senegalese fashion and flavorNilea Alexander and her husband, Lamine Diagne, started out with a neighborhood coffee shop in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. Over the past decade, though, their modest enterprise has evolved into what they call “an experience”. Next door to Café Rue Dix, which serves Senegalese cuisine, pastries and lattes, is Marché Rue Dix, their marketplace-boutique stocked with goods sourced direc
  
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• N Brown approached by Very Group ahead of family buyout

  18-10-2024 14:46 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  The Very Group submitted a takeover proposal for N Brown shortly before the Simply Be and Jacamo owner accepted a deal from a member of its founding family.
  The online department store is understood to have made a preliminary approach to buy the listed ecommerce group several weeks ago, Sky News reported.
  Sources said the offer was below the 40p per share bid that N Brown non-executive Joshua Alliance put forward this week. Related StoryFrasers Group sells N Brown stake as it chases Mulberry bid
  
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• Hot ticket: Brooklyn Beckham is latest celebrity to launch fiery sauce

  18-10-2024 12:36
  Beckham is hot on heels of Ed Sheeran, Alice Cooper and Kim Kardashian as consumers develop appetite for spicy saucesFirst came tequila. Then rosé. Now the latest celebrity-backed brand isn’t booze but a hot sauce.Recently, Brooklyn Beckham made his debut into the spicy market with Cloud 23. Continue reading...
  
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• Frasers Group sells N Brown stake as it chases Mulberry bid

  18-10-2024 11:51 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Frasers Group has backed the Alliance family’s acquisition of N Brown Group as it ramps up its bid for Mulberry.
  The Mike Ashley-backed group will sell its 20.3% stake in N Brown but said it “looks forward to a strategic relationship” with Joshua Alliance and N Brown post acquisition.
  The group added that it  “wishes Joshua Alliance and the N Brown management team every success for the future.”Earlier this week, Joshua Alliance, a non-executive director of N Br
  
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• UK firms in ‘significant financial distress’ hits record – business live

  18-10-2024 11:43
  “Toxic effect of high inflation” is hurting businesses, reports Begbies TraynorUK companies are cutting back on hiring due to economic uncertainty, new data this morning shows.The Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC) has reported that the number of job vacancy adverts dropped below 1.6m last month, for the first time in two years.“A fall in new job ads is symptomatic of a wait-and-see approach some employers are taking as they wait for more from the government aroun
  
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• Iceland v Iceland: Supermarket begins new appeal as trademark battle continues

  18-10-2024 11:16 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Iceland has begun the latest phase of its ongoing trademark dispute with the Icelandic government as it appeals against a decision that stripped it of EU trademark protection for the word Iceland.
  Executive chairman Richard Walker OBE appeared at the General Court of The European Union in Luxembourg on Wednesday (16 October) to provide opening statements in the supermarket’s appeal.
  It marks the third round of legal proceedings in an eight-year battle over the use of the word ‘Icelan
  
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• Boohoo boss to step down as retailer launches brand review that could spark breakup

  18-10-2024 10:28
  
  John Lyttle will stay as CEO of fashion group, which includes Debenhams and Karen Millen, until successor foundBoohoo’s chief executive is stepping down as the online fashion retailer launches a strategic review of its brands, which include Debenhams, Karen Millen and PrettyLittleThing, that could result in a breakup of the company.John Lyttle, who joined from Primark in 2019, has agreed to remain in post until a successor is found. Continue reading...
  
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• Comment: Growth of small outlets having outsized impact

  18-10-2024 09:58 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  The Little Green Dragon sits in a former retail unit on a parade of shops in Winchmore Hill, North London, and has just been named one... View Article
  
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• Boohoo chief to step down as fast-fashion group launches strategic review

  18-10-2024 09:51 via ft.com
  
  Retailer says it remains ‘fundamentally undervalued’ and announces £222mn debt refinancing
  
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• British retail sales beat forecasts to rise for third straight month

  18-10-2024 09:36 via ft.com
  
  Unexpected growth of 0.3% fuelled by tech purchases
  
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• Boohoo CEO to step down as the group signs new debt financing deal

  18-10-2024 09:31 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Boohoo Group has has signed a new £222 million debt financing agreement as it looks ahead to the next phase of its development. The group has also... View Article
  
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• Retail sales growth slows in Great Britain despite tech spending lift

  18-10-2024 09:03
  
  Sales volumes unexpectedly rise in September but are held back by drop in supermarket shoppingBusiness live – latest updatesSales growth in shops in Great Britain slowed last month as an increase in purchases of technology was tempered by the largest monthly fall in spending at supermarkets this year.Retail sales volumes grew by 0.3% in September, beating analyst expectations of a 0.3% drop, according to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). However, the monthly
  
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• UK retail sales beat expectations driven by strong tech demand

  18-10-2024 09:01 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  UK retail sales rose in September, beating expectations, driven by strong demand for new technology, although overall sales growth slowed, fresh data showed.
  Technology and telecommunication retailers saw sales surge by more than a third, buoyed by new product launches, including Apple’s new iPhone 16, which helped partially offset a 2.4% decrease in supermarkets.The latest Office for National Statistics data showed total retail sales volumes rose 0.3% in September. Growth was slower
  
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• Sephora to open new store at Liverpool ONE

  18-10-2024 08:55 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Sephora is continuing its UK expansion with the opening of a new store at Liverpool ONE next spring. The shop will be the beauty retailer’s 18th... View Article
  
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• Furniture Village doubles employee profit share payout after strong full year performance

  18-10-2024 08:52 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Furniture Village has doubled the amount paid out in its employee profit share scheme. Following the retailer’s share buyback in October 2022, which resulted in the business... View Article
  
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• Mothercare secures refinancing deal

  18-10-2024 08:45 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Mothercare has announced a drop in full year sales as it confirmed that it has secured a refinancing deal. In the 53 weeks to 30 March,... View Article
  
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• Sainsbury’s trials larger self-checkout tills to boost efficiency

  18-10-2024 08:44 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Sainsbury’s is piloting larger self-checkout tills as a replacement for human cashiers, following its CEO’s remarks about the need to make stores “more efficient.”
  The grocery giant said it would be testing new hybrid self-checkouts featuring with conveyor belts for customers to place their items on, as well as designated areas for bagging purchases, although shoppers will still need to scan their own items.
  These systems are a similar size to standard manned conveyor bel
  
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• Retail sales growth slows in Britain, but beats forecast as consumers splash out on technology – business live

  18-10-2024 08:40
  
  Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news, as ‘back to school’ boost lifts spending on computersOn an annual basis, retail sales volumes rose by 3.9% in September.That’s the largest annual rise in the amount of stuff bought since February 2022.“The Autumn/Winter wardrobe refresh and back-to-school rush propped up retail sales in September delivering a post-summer boost, despite record-breaking rainfall and a sharp drop in consumer confidence in September.
  
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• Boohoo CEO to exit as it secures £222m debt financing deal

  18-10-2024 08:26 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Boohoo Group group CEO John Lyttle is set to step down from the fashion giant after five years.
  The news comes as it secures a £222m debt refinancing agreement to support its “next phase of development”.
  Lyttle said: “I believe there is huge potential in this business and I will continue to work with the board to drive value for all shareholders whilst a successor is found.”
  The new debt facility includes a £125m revolving credit line, set to mature in October
  
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• Boohoo CEO to exit as it launches strategic review and signs debt deal

  18-10-2024 08:26 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Boohoo Group group CEO John Lyttle is set to step down from the fashion giant after five years.
  The news comes as it secures a £222m debt refinancing agreement to support its “next phase of development” and explores its options to “unlock and maxmise shareholder value”. The group owns Debenhams and Karen Millen alongside its young fashion division of Boohoo, BoohooMan and PrettyLittleThing.
  Group executive chairman Mahmud Kamani said: “The business has evolved
  
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• Virgin Experience Days partners with Thortful

  18-10-2024 08:15 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Experience gifting provider Virgin Experience Days has embarked on a new partnership with Thortful, the marketplace for independent creators. The move means that Thortful customers will... View Article
  
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• Mothercare eyes Asian expansion as it secures refinancing deal

  18-10-2024 08:08 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Mothercare is planning to expand into several Asian markets as it secures £24m in additional financing.
  The nursery specialist has entered a new joint venture with Reliance Brands UK covering its IP assets in India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bhutan and Bangladesh.
  Reliance holds a 51% stake in the partnership, which it acquired for £16m and the deal replaces its previous 30-year franchise agreement with the retailer from six years ago.
  It comes as Mothercare announced a refinancing deal with
  
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• Listen: How can retailers defend themselves in a world filled with fraud?

  18-10-2024 07:00 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  In 2023 alone, cyber attacks and fraud cost UK retailers a staggering £11 billion in lost revenue.
  That’s a huge chunk of money to lose at any time, but with retail margins currently razor thin, for many it could be the difference between a healthy turnover, and ceasing trading.
  Retailers need protection from bad actors looking to commit nefarious acts. But with the evolution of criminal tools moving at lightning speed, how is it possible to stay ahead?
  To answer that question, we&rs
  
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• New York menswear is back!

  18-10-2024 06:00 via ft.com
  
  The city’s retail offering for men has been lacklustre, but a wave of product lovers are seeking to change that
  
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