Retail news

• Is John Lewis on the right track to catch up to M&S?

  13-03-2025 18:23 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  John Lewis Partnership is making headway on its turnaround plan as the employee-owned business reported its profits had tripled in the last year to £126m.
  The figure might be a promising sight following three successive years of losses, but recently appointed chair Jason Tarry warned the business still has “a lot of catch up investment to do” across its store estates, supply chains, technology and overall efficiency.
  By Tarry’s own admission, the high street stalwart stil
  
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• European shares reverse gains as trade war fears escalate – as it happened

  13-03-2025 16:08
  
  Donald Trump threatens 200% tariff on EU wine, champagne and other alcoholDeliveroo has made an annual profit for the first time, after a bumpy few years since a disastrous stock market listing that earned the takeaway delivery company the nickname “flopperoo”.The 12-year-old company, a member of the FTSE 250 index of mid-sized companies, made a profit of £3m in 2024, compared with a loss of £32m in 2023, it said in a statement on Thursday.The consumer market since our ca
  
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• European shares reverse gains as trade war fears escalate – business live

  13-03-2025 14:20
  Donald Trump threatens 200% tariff on EU wine, champagne and other alcoholDeliveroo has made an annual profit for the first time, after a bumpy few years since a disastrous stock market listing that earned the takeaway delivery company the nickname “flopperoo”.The 12-year-old company, a member of the FTSE 250 index of mid-sized companies, made a profit of £3m in 2024, compared with a loss of £32m in 2023, it said in a statement on Thursday.The consumer market since our ca
  
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• Harvey Norman to open new store and UK head office in West Midlands

  13-03-2025 13:34 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Australian lifestyle, home and tech brand Harvey Norman is set to open its second store in England and a new UK head office in the West Midlands.
  The furniture retailer, which already has stores in Northern Ireland, is opening its new sites at the Gracechurch shopping centre in Royal Sutton Coldfield.
  Under the expansion, the company is expected to create up to 100 jobs across sales, marketing, online, finance, procurement, operations, warehousing, administration and management, including severa
  
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• Deliveroo pulls in first annual profit as grocery sales climb

  13-03-2025 12:59 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Deliveroo has delivered an annual profit for the first time, as grocery sales rose at the food delivery giant.
  The brand’s posted a £3m profit for the year ended 31 December 2024, compared to its £32m loss in 2023.
  Grocery hit 16% of the business’s group transaction value (GTV) during the second half, up from 13% during the same time last year.
  The company noted grocery experienced strong double-digit growth as well as further contribution from mid-sized baskets costing b
  
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• Jollyes exec returns as B&Q marketing director

  13-03-2025 12:57 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Former B&Q director and current Jollyes executive Katherine Paterson is returning to the home & DIY chain as its new marketing director.
  Paterson most recently served as chief marketing officer of pet supplies company Jollyes, and has held a number of senior roles across both large corporate businesses and smaller companies backed by private equity.
  The director began her career at Mars before moving into retail, initially at Asda as its head of format development.
  Paterson went onto a b
  
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• Tesco offers free food to shoppers to tackle food waste

  13-03-2025 12:51 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Tesco is set to give free food to shoppers in a bid to cut its food waste.
  The supermarket is rolling out “yellow sticker” prices of £0 for food products that are about to go out of date, The Telegraph reported. The grocer’s discounts are currently typically limited to 90%.
  The company’s bosses are trialling the move in a small number of its Express stores for customers visiting after 21:30pm, as part of a trial designed to reduce food waste under its net zero
  
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• DFS uplifts full-year profit forecast as interim earnings rise

  13-03-2025 12:47 via retailgazette.co.uk
  DFS recorded an uplift in its half-year results, as the furniture giant gained market share during the financial period.
  The retailer’s underlying profit almost doubled from £8.7m to £17m for the 26 weeks ended 29 December 2024.
  Gross sales were up 1.4% to £675.6m during the period, which the furniture specialist attributed to a strengthened trading performance which left its order bank in a resilient position entering its second half.
  Revenue dipped 0.1% to £504.5m
  
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• B&Q appoints new marketing director

  13-03-2025 11:53 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Home improvement retailer B&Q has appointed Katherine Paterson as its new marketing director. She will take over from Tom Hampson who has served in the role... View Article
  
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• Deliveroo turns first annual profit as it plots bigger grocery push

  13-03-2025 11:45 via ft.com
  
  Takeaway group expands beyond takeaways but warns of weak consumer sentiment
  
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• European shares rise ahead of German ‘debt brake’ debate; John Lewis staff miss out on bonus despite profits jump – business live

  13-03-2025 11:25
  Germany’s Bundestag to debate fiscal shift in special sessionDeliveroo has made an annual profit for the first time, after a bumpy few years since a disastrous stock market listing that earned the takeaway delivery company the nickname “flopperoo”.The 12-year-old company, a member of the FTSE 250 index of mid-sized companies, made a profit of £3m in 2024, compared with a loss of £32m in 2023, it said in a statement on Thursday.It’s been a long hard slog but De
  
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• John Lewis staff miss out on bonus despite profits jump; Britain’s housing market loses steam – business live

  13-03-2025 09:43
  
  Retailer says will prioritise investment in business over bonus; house buyer demand weakest since late 2023, survey showsDeutsche Bank has ramped up its bonus pool to the largest in a decade, after a surge in deals and trading last year.Germany’s biggest lender paid staff €2.5bn (£2.1bn) in variable compensation last year, it said in its annual report – up 26% on a year earlier. Continue reading...
  
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• John Lewis Partnership delivers tripled profits as it continues its transformation

  13-03-2025 09:42 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  The John Lewis Partnership has seen its full year profit triple as its ongoing transformation delivered “solid progress”. In the year to 25 January 2025, pre-tax... View Article
  
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• Hobbycraft owner explores restructuring

  13-03-2025 09:37 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Hobbycraft owner Modella Capital is considering a restructuring of the crafts chain it bought seven months ago.
  The private equity firm has hired advisors at FRP to explore potential options including a company voluntary arrangement (CVA), Sky News reported.
  Sources said that no decisions had been made and that it was possible that no substantive action would be taken. Related StoryWHSmith inches closer to sale of high street business09/03/2025 x 6:44 PMA spokesperson for Modella confirmed that
  
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• Schuh cuts 39 jobs amid business restructure

  13-03-2025 09:27 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Schuh has cut 39 jobs across its head office and stores as part of a wider restructure to trim costs.
  The footwear retailer confirmed that it was making redundancies, with some jobs going on a voluntary basis, Retail Week reported.
  Schuh president Colin Temple told the publication: “Due to ongoing economic challenges, we recently made the difficult decision to restructure certain areas of our business. Related StoryPets at Home to cut jobs as it streamlines store management13/03/2025 x 8:1
  
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• DFS reports strong profit uplift

  13-03-2025 09:22 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  DFS has said its strong first half performance means it expects to report full year profit above market expectations despite a subdued furniture market. In the... View Article
  
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• Pets at Home to cut jobs as it streamlines store management

  13-03-2025 09:14 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  Pets at Home has entered a consultation with more than two thousand of its employees as the retailer streamlines its in-store management.
  The business is consulting with 2,500 store staff as it moves to a three-tier management structure, which currently includes store, deputy and assistant managers. Pets at Home is dropping the assistant store manager role, Retail Week reported.
  The retailer’s colleague structure on the shop floor will also be simplified, with the current three tiers of pe
  
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• Pets at Home places 2,500 roles into consultation as it streamlines store management

  13-03-2025 09:14 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Pets at Home has entered with 2,500 store staff as it moves to a three-tier management structure, which currently includes store, deputy and assistant managers.
  Pets at Home is dropping the assistant store manager role, Retail Week reported.
  The retailer’s colleague structure on the shop floor will also be simplified, with the current three tiers of pet care expert, pet care adviser and store assistant model moving to just pet colleague and pet customer expert.
  It is understood that most o
  
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• John Lewis Partnership profits triple but skips staff bonus

  13-03-2025 08:51 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  John Lewis Partnership has tripled its profits to £126m but staff at the employee-owned group have missed out on a bonus for the third year in a row.
  The retail group reported sales had nudged up 3% to £12.8bn in 52 weeks to 25 January as its profits rocketed from the £42m before exceptional items it reported the year before.
  Waitrose sales grew 4.4% to £8bn and volumes rose 2.6%, helping to double its adjusted operating profit to £227m.
  The Partnership attributed t
  
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• John Lewis Partnership denies staff bonus despite tripled profits

  13-03-2025 08:51 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  John Lewis Partnership has tripled its profits to £126m but staff at the employee-owned group have missed out on a bonus for the third consecutive year.
  The retail group sales rose 3% to £12.8bn in 52 weeks to 25 January, bolstered by a 4.4% uplift in sales across Waitrose to £8bn.
  Volumes at the grocer rose 2.6%, helping to double its adjusted operating profit to £227m.
  The Partnership attributed the growth to its £61m investment into lowering prices, improved
  
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• John Lewis will not pay staff bonus despite rising profits

  13-03-2025 08:30 via ft.com
  
  Employee-owned retail group says it will prioritise investing in its turnaround
  
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• John Lewis profits triple to £126m but hopes for staff bonus dashed again

  13-03-2025 08:10
  
  Cash reward at staff-owned group ruled out for third year in a row, with focus on £600m plans to transform businessBusiness live – latest updatesThe owner of John Lewis and Waitrose has tripled its annual profits but workers at the staff-owned retail group have missed out on a bonus for a third year in a row.The John Lewis Partnership said group sales rose 3% to £12.8bn in the 12 months to 25 January 2025, as underlying profit rose from £42m to £126m. However, the c
  
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• Currys supports digital inclusion with proceeds from refurbished sales

  13-03-2025 07:37 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Starting this month, Currys will dedicate a portion of every online sale of refurbished tech in its mobile and computing categories to supporting those affected by... View Article
  
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• Fossil Group appoints new chief financial officer

  13-03-2025 07:15 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Fossil Group has appointed Randy Greben as its new chief financial officer. Due to take up his role on 17 March, he will succeed Andrew Skobe... View Article
  
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• Freemans sales boosted by Sophie Ellis-Bextor campaign

  13-03-2025 07:14 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Freemans saw its sales rise by 13% in its final quarter of 2024 after trade was boosted by a TV ad starring Sophie Ellis-Bextor. The digital... View Article
  
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• Nearly one in four Britons have witnessed shoplifting, study shows

  13-03-2025 06:00
  
  A similar number have also seen staff abused as shops say crime is spiralling out of control with 55,000 thefts a dayNearly a quarter of Britons have witnessed shoplifting in the past year and seen physical or verbal abuse of shop workers as criminals become “bolder and more aggressive”.A survey carried out for the British Retail Consortium (BRC) by the market research firm Opinium found Nottingham to be a UK hotspot for retail crime where 32% of residents said they had witnessed sho
  
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• Data: A quarter of shoppers witnessed shoplifting last year

  13-03-2025 01:01 via retailgazette.co.uk
  
  The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has warned that shoplifting has become “all-too-common” as it found that over 16 million customers have witnessed shoplifting across the UK in the last 12 months.
  Nottingham and London were the two cities where incidents of shoplifting were witnessed by the highest percentage of shoppers, ranking at 32% and 29% respectively.
  Across the UK overall, 24% of shoppers have witnessed an incident of shoplifting over the past year.
  Survey data from the BRC
  
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• US regulator backtracks on request to delay Amazon Prime trial

  13-03-2025 00:11 via ft.com
  
  Federal Trade Commission lawyer had initially cited ‘extremely severe’ resource shortfall before changing tack
  
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