Retail news

• To give or not to give presents at Christmas, that is the question | Letters

  23-12-2025 18:48
  Becky Kennedy thinks many people see no need for the performative gift buying for a person who needs very little. Laura Matthews says no one should feel obliged to buyYour anonymous correspondent (Letters, 19 December) implies that those who say “Shall we just not do presents [for Christmas] this year?” are ungrateful or unappreciative for the things they already have. They have the economic wherewithal to buy what they want, when they want, so the sense of special occasion, and grat
  
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• Usdaw calls for shops to be closed on Boxing Day

  23-12-2025 16:19 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Retail trade union Usdaw has today (23 December) published a poll of over 7,000 of its members, which shows 97% are calling for large stores to be closed on Boxing Day.
  “This would give staff a decent break over the festive period after a busy run-up to Christmas,” said the organisation.
  Usdaw is now calling on retailers to close early on Christmas Eve and to keep stores shut until 27 December.Related Story Usdaw calls for retail staff to be offered free jabs amid flu ‘tidal wa
  
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• CDs return to Christmas shopping lists as gen Z embrace ‘retro renaissance’

  23-12-2025 15:25
  Demand for CD players rises 74% this year amid deluxe releases from artists such as Taylor Swift and Pink FloydForget the vinyl revival. CD players and compact discs are back on Christmas lists this year amid a wave of 90s nostalgia and coveted “deluxe” releases from big acts such as Taylor Swift and Pink Floyd.Demand for compact discs peaked in the mid-00s and many households ditched their systems and libraries as digital music took off. But the distinctive whirr is returning to bed
  
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• M&S tops UK retail trust rankings despite cyberattack, GlobalData finds

  23-12-2025 11:43 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Marks & Spencer has been named the UK’s most trusted retailer in 2025, retaining consumer confidence despite the reputational damage posed by a major cyber-attack earlier in the year, according to new research from GlobalData.
  The ranking is underpinned by the strength of M&S’ distinctive own-brand ranges, which consumers struggled to replace during service disruption caused by the attack.
  GlobalData said the lack of comparable alternatives reinforced perceptions that M&S
  
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• Lidl to donate 100 tonnes of surplus food on Christmas Eve

  23-12-2025 10:52 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Lidl GB will donate around 100 tonnes of surplus food from its UK stores tomorrow (24 December), as the discounter continues what is set to be its largest food donation year to date.
  The Christmas Eve redistribution forms part of Lidl GB’s Feed it Back programme, delivered in partnership with community platform Neighbourly, and will see surplus food from across the retailer’s estate donated to local charities nationwide.
  The donation is expected to help create more than 238,000 Chris
  
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• ‘We’ve seen it decimate areas’: Somerset town’s traders oppose parking charges

  23-12-2025 10:00
  Traders on Clevedon’s Hill Road say they fear the proposals could hasten the decline of independent retail as councils across Britain look to raise income by forcing shoppers to pay to parkThe shop windows are decked out in their festive finery, there are carols on the stereos and the tills are ringing. The independent stores, cafes and restaurants lining Hill Road in the Somerset seaside town of Clevedon are hoping to take advantage of the crucial pre-Christmas period.The street’s c
  
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• Data: UK festive retail spend rises but online growth outpaces stores

  23-12-2025 09:35 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Christmas retail spending has risen 3.6% year on year, according to new analysis from Visa, with e-commerce continuing to outperform physical retail despite stores accounting for the majority of spending.
  Preliminary findings from Visa Consulting & Analytics’ (VCA) annual Retail Spend Monitor show that in-store sales represented 57.4% of total holiday payment volume, rising 2.1% compared with last year.
  Online spending grew faster, increasing 5.8% year on year, supported by early promo
  
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• Cheese, gift sets and matching pyjamas: Asda data highlights festive spending

  23-12-2025 09:18 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Asda has shared a snapshot of customer shopping behaviour this festive season, revealing strong demand across food, gifting, clothing and pet categories as shoppers prepare for Christmas and New Year celebrations.
  Search data from Asda.com shows significant year-on-year increases in seasonal products, with searches for Christmas cheese up 339%, said the retailer.
  Gift-led grocery and personal care items are also performing strongly, including a 922% increase in searches for Lynx gift sets and a
  
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• Tesco Winter Food Collection delivers 1.48m meals thanks to ‘generous’ shoppers

  23-12-2025 09:07 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Tesco customers have donated the equivalent of 1.48 million meals during the retailer’s Winter Food Collection.
  The scheme, which ran from 24 to 29 November across Tesco’s large-format and Express stores, saw customers donate long-life food items for redistribution through food charities FareShare and Trussell.
  More than 2,000 volunteers supported Tesco store colleagues during the campaign.Related Story Tesco launches tie-up with Mistral AI18/12/2025 x 8:46 AMAlongside food donations
  
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• The hill I will die on: Ignore the haters, TK Maxx is actually quite good | Hannah J Davies

  23-12-2025 09:00
  The chaos is undeniable, but where else are you going to get a pair of jeans and a pistachio-cream panettone cake for such a reasonable price?‘Oh it’s a mess!” my mum says, shaking her head. “It’s like a jumble sale.” I’m fresh from a trip to TK Maxx, and all I’m getting is negativity. A couple of days later I’m watching Educating Yorkshire when it happens again: one of the teachers tells his pupils to tidy up, lest their classroom look like
  
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• Pets at Home appoints new CEO

  23-12-2025 08:50 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Pets at Home Group has announced the appointment of James Bailey as Chief Executive Officer, with effect from 30 March 2026.
  He was most recently managing director of Waitrose, a position he held for over five years from April 2020.
  “During his tenure, he led Waitrose to strong sales and profit growth, steering the business through the challenging Covid period and its immediate aftermath of high inflation. He also relaunched Waitrose.com after the company moved off the Ocado platform,&rdqu
  
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• Pets at Home appoints former Waitrose managing director as chief executive

  23-12-2025 08:23 via theretailbulletin.com
  Pets at Home Group has appointed former Waitrose managing director James Bailey as its new chief executive, with effect from 30 March. He led Waitrose for... View Article
  
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• Zofa to open first London store

  23-12-2025 06:44 via theretailbulletin.com
  Online sofa brand Zofa has selected Fulham Road for the opening of its first physical store in London. The retailer has signed for a new two-floor... View Article
  
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• Greggs opens 600th franchise store

  23-12-2025 06:19 via theretailbulletin.com
  Greggs has opened a milestone 600th franchise shop in Stonecross Services in Bexwell in a partnership with Motor Fuel Group. The move forms part of the... View Article
  
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• Iceland brings festive cheer to local communities

  23-12-2025 06:03 via theretailbulletin.com
  Iceland Foods and The Food Warehouse has donated thousands of Christmas items to charities and groups that support families and individuals in their local communities through... View Article
  
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• Is Christmas as good for the UK economy as it used to be?

  23-12-2025 06:00
  It used to be the most wonderful time of year for the retail and hospitality sectors, but consumer behaviour is shifting
  
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