Retail news

• Consumer confidence plummets to 2008 levels after UK lockdown

  06-04-2020 01:03 via ft.com
  Worries over personal finances and health of economy prompts slump in buying intentions
  
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• Online Home Shop sales hit £100m as profits triple

  24-07-2026 12:51
  
  Online Home Shop has reported record annual sales of £100m after strong growth across its website, marketplaces and expanding product range.
  The family-owned homeware retailer, also known as OHS, said gross sales increased 68% year on year in the period to 31 January 2026.
  Operating profit more than tripled during the year, rising from £5m to £15.3m.
  The results mark a second consecutive record-breaking year for the Greater Manchester-based retailer, which attributed the perfor
  
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• Evans Cycles to launch new store in Wandsworth

  24-07-2026 12:42
  
  Evans Cycles is opening a new store at Southside Shopping Centre in Wandsworth, London.
  The new 3,500 sq ft site, which opens on 30 July, features two floors showcasing over 160 bikes alongside a curated selection of “the world’s best cycling brands”.
  A fully-stocked service centre powered by Cytechtrained mechanics is at the heart of the new location, according to the bike retailer. 
  The “expert team” is equipped to handle “everything from quick fixes an
  
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• Goldsmiths unveils upsized store at Harlequin Watford

  24-07-2026 11:23
  Goldsmiths has opened an upsized store at Harlequin Watford shopping centre.
  The expansion has extended the jewellery retailer’s original store by 217 per cent from 1,528 sq ft to 4,840 sq ft. It has also delivered Goldsmiths’ latest hybrid concept to the centre. 
  The launch has allowed Goldsmiths to “serve the high demand of Harlequin’s affluent visitors,” with major expansions being made to its dedicated areas for Rolex, Tudor, Tag Heuer, Breitling, Longines,
  
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• Amazon launches 30-minute grocery delivery in Manchester

  24-07-2026 11:17
  
  Amazon has expanded its ultra-fast Amazon Now delivery service to Manchester, marking its first launch outside London.
  Customers in selected postcodes across central and east Manchester can now order thousands of groceries and household essentials for delivery in around 30 minutes or less.
  Available seven days a week through Amazon’s app and website, the service covers 35 product categories, including milk, eggs, fresh fruit and vegetables, medicines, nappies, toiletries and pet products.
  
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• Consumer confidence and retail sales both rise amid “Burnham bounce”

  24-07-2026 10:54 via theretailbulletin.com
  Consumer confidence has risen this month after being boosted  by sun, football and the appointment of new Prime Minister. GfK’s long-running Consumer Confidence Index has increased…
  
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• Is Lidl the mystery retailer behind Ocado’s robotic warehouse deal?

  24-07-2026 09:53
  
  Industry sleuths have tipped Lidl as the potential customer behind Ocado’s latest robotic warehouse deal, which is due to go live during its 2028 financial year.
  Ocado revealed earlier this week that it had signed an agreement to build a large customer fulfilment centre for a “fast-growing European national retailer”, but declined to identify the company.
  The facility will use Ocado’s latest Re technology, including its lightweight 600 Series robots, On-Grid Robotic Pick
  
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• Tesco expands rapid delivery service through Uber Eats and Deliveroo

  24-07-2026 09:40 via theretailbulletin.com
  Tesco is extending its rapid grocery delivery offering by launching on Uber Eats and Deliveroo. The supermarket already offers store-to-door grocery delivery in as little as…
  
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• Waitrose passes 200-store milestone in digital shelf label rollout

  24-07-2026 09:40
  
  Waitrose has installed electronic shelf labels in more than 200 shops as the grocer pushes ahead with one of the UK’s largest store digitalisation programmes.
  The supermarket is replacing traditional paper shelf-edge tickets with Solum’s Newton Pro digital displays, allowing prices and product information to be updated centrally across its store estate.
  Waitrose said the technology would improve the speed, accuracy and consistency of price changes while reducing the amount of time sh
  
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• Kim Kardashian’s Skims opens first UK flagship on Regent Street

  24-07-2026 09:33
  
  Kim Kardashian’s shapewear brand Skims has officially opened its first standalone UK store.
  The 12,000 sq ft Regent Street flagship is the retailer’s largest store in Europe and carries its most extensive UK product range to date.
  Located at 245–247 Regent Street, on the former Ted Baker site, the shop spans a prominent corner unit in London’s West End. Property adviser Cushman & Wakefield previously said the site had been secured as Skims’ first European flagsh
  
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• Southern Co-op to give 10,000 shoppers their groceries for free

  24-07-2026 09:27
  
  Southern Co-op has launched a summer giveaway across 173 stores that will see up to 10,000 customers receive their shopping for free.
  The group’s “Pop in and Win” campaign will run until 21 August, with winners selected automatically at random when paying at staffed or self-service checkouts.
  Customers must spend at least £1 on qualifying products to be entered, with the retailer’s till system determining whether their basket will be paid for. No action or manual se
  
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• Skims opens first UK flagship on London’s Regent Street

  24-07-2026 09:25 via theretailbulletin.com
  Kim Kardashian’s Skims has opened its first standalone UK flagship on London’s Regent Street as it accelerates its international expansion. Spanning 12,000 square feet, the store…
  
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• ‘Burnham bounce’ and World Cup lift consumer confidence

  24-07-2026 09:22
  
  UK consumer confidence recorded its biggest monthly rise in almost three years in July, as political change, England’s World Cup performance and warm weather lifted shoppers’ mood.
  The GfK consumer confidence index jumped six points from -23 in June to -17 in July, marking its highest reading since January and its largest monthly improvement since November 2023.
  The increase was substantially stronger than economists had expected, with a Reuters poll forecasting that the index would
  
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• Trump renews 10% tariff on most UK goods

  24-07-2026 09:18
  
  The US president has renewed a 10 per cent tariff on most goods imported from the UK, maintaining pressure on British retailers and consumer brands selling into the American market.
  The US Trade Representative imposed tariffs of either 10 per cent or 12.5 per cent on 60 trading partners on Thursday, accusing them of failing to introduce and effectively enforce bans on goods produced using forced labour.
  The measures cover countries responsible for 99.4 per cent of US imports and will apply to mo
  
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• Analysis: Burnham’s warehouse tax may be delayed but retailers are not out of the firing line

  24-07-2026 09:09
  
  Andy Burnham’s government has stepped back, for now, from an immediate business rates raid on large warehouses.
  Reports earlier this week suggested the new Prime Minister was preparing to raise as much as £1bn from distribution centres operated by businesses such as Amazon and Asos, using the proceeds to reduce the tax burden on pubs and high-street businesses.
  The business rates package unveiled on Thursday was considerably narrower. Nearly 32,000 pubs, social clubs and live music v
  
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• eBay expands international shipping support for UK sellers

  24-07-2026 08:57
  
  eBay has expanded its international shipping programme to the UK to help small businesses, entrepreneurs and casual sellers reach customers overseas.
  The company confirmed International Shipping will begin rolling out to UK sellers in August.
  The service will give sellers access to more than 136 million buyers across over 195 countries and territories, while eBay handles customs documentation, tax and duty calculations, international delivery, carrier management and post-sale support.
  Under the
  
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• Southern Co-op launches free shopping giveaway across 173 stores

  24-07-2026 08:56 via theretailbulletin.com
  Southern Co-op has launched a four-week giveaway where up to 10,000 customers will have their shopping paid for, as it looks to support communities through periods…
  
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• Goldsmiths unveils new 4,840 sq ft store at Harlequin Watford

  24-07-2026 08:42 via theretailbulletin.com
  Watches of Switzerland Group’s Goldsmiths brand has opened a new, upsized store at Harlequin Watford. The shop, in the brand’s latest hybrid concept, has increased in…
  
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• Interview: Why the heatwave is putting the cold chain under pressure

  23-07-2026 14:53
  
  Britain’s increasingly scorching summers are exposing weaknesses in the systems retailers rely on to keep food safe; from the refrigeration units in supermarkets to the trucks and warehouses that move chilled and frozen products around the country.
  This year’s heat has already provided a warning. The Met Office recorded temperatures of 35C or higher in May, June and July for the first time in the UK’s weather record, while eight days have so far exceeded 34C, surpassing the pre
  
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• Back Market: ‘The biggest challenge is convincing people that refurbished is not second-hand’

  23-07-2026 14:48
  
  For Back Market, the biggest obstacle to selling refurbished technology has never simply been price, but trust.
  The French marketplace, founded in 2014, has built a business around persuading consumers that a device which has already had an owner can be every bit as desirable as one fresh from a factory.
  Now, as the price of new technology rises due to AI-related shortages and consumers become more aware of e-waste, the company believes it has a chance to move refurbished electronics from the ma
  
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• Jigsaw to launch new store in Glasgow

  23-07-2026 14:45
  
  Luxury womenswear retailer Jigsaw is set to open a new store at Princes Square by M retail destination in Glasgow.
  The fashion brand is opening its doors on 25 July on the ground floor of the destination, next to jewellery brand Argento. 
  A Jigsaw spokesperson said: “As Jigsaw continues to invest in its UK retail portfolio, the brand is pleased to announce the opening of its new store at Princes Square in Glasgow. 
  “The new boutique strengthens Jigsaw’s presence in on
  
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• Shoplifting falls 4% but retail workers still face abuse, Retail Trust warns

  23-07-2026 12:36
  
  Police-recorded shoplifting offences have fallen for the first time following a sustained period of increases, but the Retail Trust has warned that the figures do not mean the retail crime crisis is over.
  The number of shoplifting offences recorded by police in England and Wales dropped four per cent to 507,086 in the year to March 2026, down from 530,324 during the previous 12 months, according to the latest Office for National Statistics data.
  The ONS said the decline followed a period of risi
  
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• Puma appoints digital veteran to lead global ecommerce push

  23-07-2026 12:02
  
  Puma has appointed former Adidas and Reebok executive Dusan Hamlin to the newly created role of vice president of ecommerce as it looks to accelerate its digital growth.
  Hamlin, who takes up the position with immediate effect, will oversee the sportswear giant’s global digital and ecommerce strategy and report to chief commercial officer Matthias Bäumer.
  The ecommerce veteran brings more than 25 years of industry experience, having previously led digital transformation projects at bot
  
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• Tesco acquires three shops from Proudfoot Group

  23-07-2026 11:38
  
  Tesco has reportedly bought three shops from family run independent supermarket chain Proudfoot Group.
  The grocery giant acquired stores based in the Newby, Seamer and Manham Hill areas of Scarborough. The shops have been supplied by Co-op Wholesale, formerly trading as Nisa, since 1980.
  The Seamer and Manham Hill sites are set to reopen as Tesco Express shops during the autumn, while the Newby store will relaunch as a Tesco Superstore in 2027.
  The independent retailer’s fourth grocery sto
  
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• YouTube debuts Shopping Affiliate programme with Boots, M&S and Next signing up

  23-07-2026 11:30
  
  YouTube is launching its Shopping Affiliate programme in the UK, in a move that creates “an ecosystem where creators, retailers and viewers connect seamlessly”.
  Major UK retailers have already partnered with YouTube for this content tool, including Boots, Debenhams, Etsy, M&S, Next and Wayfair.
  The video platform, which is owned by Google’s parent company Alphabet, has rolled out a raft of new tools and an expanded creator commerce offer, as it looks to cemen
  
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• Boots launches hygiene poverty campaign as research reveals impact on young jobseekers

  23-07-2026 11:02
  
  Boots has partnered with The Hygiene Bank and The King’s Trust to distribute 15,000 toiletry kits after new research found that a lack of access to hygiene essentials is preventing young people from pursuing job opportunities.
  Four in five 18-to-24-year-olds affected by hygiene poverty said they had delayed or missed a career opportunity because they could not access products such as deodorant, toothpaste and period products, according to research commissioned by the health and beauty reta
  
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• Etsy becomes first marketplace to offer Royal Mail’s EU duties paid services

  23-07-2026 10:55
  
  Etsy will offer Royal Mail’s new postal delivery duties paid (PDDP) service for sellers sending to the European Union, following new customs requirements that came into effect on 1 July.
  The new EU customs regime introduced a flat €3 customs duty on most business-to-consumer parcels valued under €150 entering the EU from outside the 27 member states. 
  Royal Mail’s solution enables duties to be calculated and paid when postage is purchased. The company stressed this pro
  
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• The Works profits surge by 44% in ‘pivotal’ year

  23-07-2026 10:05 via theretailbulletin.com
  The Works has been boosted by a 44% surge in profitability in what it described as a pivotal year. In the 52 weeks to 3 May,…
  
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• PUMA appoints Dusan Hamlin as vice president of ecommerce

  23-07-2026 10:05 via theretailbulletin.com
  PUMA has appointed Dusan Hamlin to the newly created role of vice president of ecommerce with immediate effect. Hamlin brings more than 25 years of industry…
  
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• Tesco adds Deliveroo and Uber to q-commerce offering

  23-07-2026 09:37
  As well as its own Tesco Whoosh service, shoppers at the UK’s largest supermarket will soon be able to order via Deliveroo and Uber Eats.
  Responding to the growing demand for rapid delivery of groceries, Tesco will initially launch on Uber Eats this August before expanding to the Deliveroo platform later in the summer.
  Customers will also benefit from Clubcard points and prices when shopping through the apps, as Tesco works to ensure the benefits of its loyalty programme reaches all on-dem
  
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