Retail news

• Wren Kitchens opens 95th showroom

  07-08-2020 01:00 via theretailbulletin.com
  
  Wren Kitchens has opened its 95th UK showroom at St John’s Retail Park in Wolverhampton. Creating 20 jobs in retail, design and surveying, the store will... View Article
  
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• Quiz Clothing collapses into administration as online store closes

  05-02-2026 16:15 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Quiz Clothing has entered administration, with its online store closing and more than 100 redundancies confirmed following a tough Christmas trading period.
  Administrators have been appointed to the fashion retailer after the business was hit by weaker-than-expected festive sales and rising cost pressures.
  Alistair McAlinden and Geoff Jacobs of Interpath were today (5 February) appointed joint administrators to Orion Retail Limited, Tarak International Limited and Zandra Systems Limited, which t
  
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• WHSmith launches new sites at Manchester and Liverpool airports

  05-02-2026 16:03 via retailgazette.co.uk
  WHSmith opened three new sites in Manchester Airport and Liverpool John Lennon Airport this week, marking its continued investment in travel hubs across the North of the UK.
  At Manchester Airport Terminal 2, the business, which sold its UK high street retail operation last year, has launched its first artisan coffee shop, Grindsmith, in partnership with the Manchester coffee brand.
  Next door, the company has also unveiled a new travel essentials store, inspired by the city’s industrial her
  
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• Frasers Group to snap up majority shareholding in Maxi Sport

  05-02-2026 15:58 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Frasers Group is set to acquire a majority shareholding in Italian retailer Maxi Sport SpA.
  The activewear brand’s owners, Emanuele Sala, Giovanni Sala, Ester Sala and Giulia Sala, will retain a shareholding and stay on the business’s leadership team for its “next chapter of growth,” according to Frasers.
  Maxi Sport operates 18 stores across Italy, including six flagship locations. 
  The business offers “an extensive range of products spanning extreme sports and
  
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• Joules appoints former Asos exec as buying and sourcing director

  05-02-2026 13:21 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Fashion brand Joules has named former Asos exec Katie Coates as its new director of buying and sourcing, Drapers reported.
  Coates previously served as Asos interim director of responsible sourcing and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) from September 2023 to April 2025, after joining the company in January 2021 as its head of sourcing. 
  She worked as director of sales – Collective Apparel for clothes manufacturer CherryField from October 2018 to December 2022.
  Additionally, C
  
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• UK shoppers are more ready for AI than retailers think

  05-02-2026 12:05 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Retail’s AI conversation is starting to feel oddly familiar. Consumers and retailers are moving at different speeds. This time, though, it’s the inverse of what typically happens. In the case of AI, consumers are demonstrating a readiness for technology that retailers haven’t been able to match.
  That’s the core tension running through an extremely insightful new piece of research conducted by global AI and tech acceleration partner CI&T, called the ‘Retail
  
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• Combining heritage with contemporary at Pashley Cycles

  05-02-2026 11:59 via theretailbulletin.com
  Walking into the workshop of Pashley Cycles in Stratford-upon-Avon amid craftsmen brazing and welding bike frames was sufficiently exciting to the potential new CEO visiting the... View Article
  
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• M&S launches new flagship in Bath

  05-02-2026 10:36 via retailgazette.co.uk
  M&S has opened a new flagship store in SouthGate, Bath.
  The 83,000 sq ft store, which comprises four floors, has been relocated from the retailer’s previous Stall Street location.
  On the ground floor, the store features a 14,000 sq ft fresh market-style foodhall, including a flower shop, a line up of fresh market specials from M&S Select Farms and its latest product launches.
  There is also a new bakery and coffee counter offers takeaway barista-made hot and cold drinks, alongside a
  
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• Sainsbury’s and Amazon bosses join Retail Trust’s board of trustees

  05-02-2026 10:21 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Sainsbury’s chief retail, logistics and supply chain officer Tracey Clements, and Amazon’s director for EU Fresh Matt Birch have been appointed as new trustees of retail industry charity the Retail Trust.
  The pair will join other retail leaders on the charity’s board of trustees including Landsec’s managing director for retail Bruce Findlay, New Look’s former executive chairman Alistair George, and Matalan’s former chief customer and omni-c
  
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• Retailers ready for trade show Scoop

  05-02-2026 10:01 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Fashion and lifestyle trade show Scoop will open at London’s Olympia National on Sunday (8 February), marking 15 years of the annual buying extravaganza.
  Bringing together international designers from fashion, accessories, lifestyle and home, the three-day event will welcome buyers, press and industry leaders to celebrate “creativity, craftsmanship and thoughtful discovery at the heart of modern buying”.
  This year’s highlights include leading department stores and retaile
  
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• Gymshark appoints Carly Natalizia as chief commercial officer

  05-02-2026 09:10 via theretailbulletin.com
  Gymshark has appointed Carly Natalizia to the position of chief commercial officer. Having joined the fitness clothing brand four years ago as vice president of marketing,... View Article
  
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• M&S unveils new flagship store in Bath

  05-02-2026 08:46 via theretailbulletin.com
  M&S has unveiled a new flagship store in Bath’s SouthGate following a relocation of its former store in the city. Spanning four floors, the 83,000 square... View Article
  
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• How hybrid in-store media networks are bridging the ‘build or buy’ divide

  05-02-2026 07:17 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Stores are rapidly evolving into full-fledged media channels, as retailers double down on retail media network (RMN) investments. The transformation is being fuelled by growing demand for the ad channel, with 65 per cent of global marketers projected to incorporate retail media into their planning mix in the next year.
  But as excitement for the medium builds, so does the complexity of the infrastructure behind it. Connecting in-store screens, smart shelves and data-driven advertising to bro
  
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• Tesco sorry for putting up Welsh bilingual signs in Cornwall

  04-02-2026 20:12
  Campaigners say they appreciate attempt to use Cornish but mistake points to need for more access to languageShoppers in Cornwall could have been forgiven for feeling bemused after a supermarket put up bilingual signs – in Welsh.A branch of Tesco in Helston – about 200 miles from south Wales by road – pointed shoppers towards pysgod, which is Welsh, not Cornish, for fish. It also labelled sweet potato as tatws melys – again Welsh instead of Cornish. Continue reading...
  
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• Shoppers focus on health as supplement sales soar

  04-02-2026 17:11 via retailgazette.co.uk
  UK shoppers are increasingly focusing on improving their health, according to new data from NIQ.
  The company said 1 in 4 households reported that physical health was their number one priority for the year ahead.
  NIQ said this impacted January revenues, with increased sales of protein (+9.6%) and fibre (+14.1%) based foods leading to “considerable value growth” over the last 26 weeks. 
  Sales of supplements were 18.4% and minerals increased 9.2% over the last four weeks.Related St
  
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• Samsung Ads expands Amazon DSP partnership

  04-02-2026 16:52 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Samsung Ads has collaborated with Amazon Delivery Service Partner (DSP) to provide marketers with “direct programmatic” access to its premium Samsung TV Plus ad inventory in Europe.
  The new partnership, which allows advertisers to reach audiences across the open internet, was previously launched in the United States and Canada.
  Alex Hole, SVP Samsung Services Europe, said: “Gen Z Samsung Smart TV viewers are embracing streaming TV, watching an average of 1 hour and 38 minu
  
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• Watches of Switzerland boosts FY26 sales guidance

  04-02-2026 16:49 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Watches of Switzerland has upgraded its sales guidance for its 2026 financial year (FY), after better than expected trading over the key holiday quarter.
  The luxury watch retailer forecast revenues for FY26 to jump between 9% and 11% in constant currency, compared to its prior guidance of 6% to 10%.
  With group sales coming in at £1.65bn for FY25, this pushes the brand’s full year sales forecast to between £1.8bn and £1.83bn. 
  Despite this, the business reduced its pr
  
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• Six retailers investing in bricks-and-mortar in 2026

  04-02-2026 16:39 via retailgazette.co.uk
  The start of the year has seen various UK retailers invest in new stores.
  In January, real estate agency Knight Frank reported “the pendulum of investment” in retail was “swinging back towards physical stores,” and noted there were “growing signs to suggest that structural change in retail may finally be playing out”.
  Here, Retail Gazette looks at six retailers betting on bricks-and-mortar this year.
  Co-op
  Co-op is planning to launch 18 stores during the first
  
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• American Golf acquired by Peter Jones and his investment group

  04-02-2026 15:33 via theretailbulletin.com
  American Golf has been acquired by Dragons’ Den star and Jessops owner Peter Jones and his investment group. The company was purchased from private equity firm... View Article
  
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• Gymshark promotes chief digital officer as new CCO

  04-02-2026 13:05 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Gymshark has named Carly Natalizia as its new chief commercial officer (CCO). 
  Moving from her existing role of chief digital officer, Natalizia is set to continue reporting directly to the brand’s founder and CEO Ben Francis.
  In her new position, Natalizia will oversee the sportswear retailer’s “ongoing journey to becoming a fully omnichannel business,” Gymshark said, including introducing new products and scaling new business channels. 
  She will also “co
  
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• Watches of Switzerland Group raises full year sales guidance

  04-02-2026 12:04 via theretailbulletin.com
   Watches of Switzerland Group has raised its full year sales outlook after a strong third quarter. In a trading statement, the group said sales growth was... View Article
  
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• Discount scheme Blue Light Card unveils first-ever TV ad

  04-02-2026 11:50 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Retail discount and reward provider Blue Light Card has unveiled a new ad campaign aimed at targeting retired frontline workers.
  The scheme – which offers discounts at a range of high street stores, including Debenhams, JD Sports and New Look – is available to active and retired workers in a range of essential service roles.
  The new campaign will run on ITV during the day and highlight that eligibility for the discount card doesn’t end at retirement. It is the firm’s firs
  
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• How retail marketers are implementing AI into existing workflows

  04-02-2026 11:02 via retailgazette.co.uk
  The retail marketing industry is awash with artificial intelligence (AI) hype – much of it vague, speculative or fear-driven.
  According to WARC, 59% of marketers now worry about disruption from AI, up from 27% in 2023.
  With pressures to balance brand and performance, manage campaigns across multiple channels and prove ROI, retail marketers are being challenged not just to understand AI, but to make it work within existing workflows without slowing operations.
  But what does implementation o
  
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• Asos upskills designers in generative AI to speed up production

  04-02-2026 10:51 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Asos has partnered with GenAI fashion start-up Fermat to upskill more than 100 designers in generative AI and speed up its production process.
  Fermat’s technology is now embedded across the fashion retailer’s design operations, enabling designers to turn sketches into photo realistic visuals in seconds, according to Asos. 
  The technology allows Asos to “instantly explore different colours, fabrics and variations,” which it said helped it to communicate ideas more cle
  
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• Watch: Waitrose launches sci-fi TV ads

  04-02-2026 10:39 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Supermarket chain Waitrose has launched a new ad campaign featuring a ‘Gastronaut’.
  Devised by creative agency Wonderhood Studios, the advert marks the launch of the supermarket’s new ‘the home of food lovers’ platform.
  Titled ‘The Gastronaut, the creative showcases a “dramatic representation of the food versus fuel debate”.
  The marketing drive follows an astronaut as he journeys through space. He can be seen longing for real food as he is served f
  
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• How retail brands are proving themselves in real life again?

  04-02-2026 10:00 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Digital channels are awash with retail brands screaming for attention from every corner, writes Chris Rhodes, founder and creative director at creative production agency Experience.
  Chris Rhodes, founder and creative director at Experience
  But some brands are taking a different route and allocating significantly more resources to experiential marketing, with event budgets predicted to grow 6.6% in 2026.
  This shift suggests as digital channels become increasingly crowded, brands are rediscovering
  
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• M&S leads Valentine’s Day dining spend, says research

  04-02-2026 09:56 via retailgazette.co.uk
  Marks & Spencer is ahead in the race to attract Valentine’s Day shoppers, according to a new study.
  Research* by product intelligence business Vypr found for a special Valentine’s Day meal, M&S is the most-chosen supermarket for dinner ingredients (15%), just ahead of Tesco (14%).
  M&S also leads for dine-in deals, with 18% of respondents planning to shop at the retailer for their Valentine’s meal, compared with 14% for Tesco.Related Story M&S kidswear director d
  
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• Conversation with… Matthew Bourne, retail director at COOK

  04-02-2026 08:21 via theretailbulletin.com
  Here we chat with Matthew Bourne, retail director at COOK, as he returns as a judge for this year’s People in Retail Awards. From standout product... View Article
  
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• Omnichannel grocery: How connected retail experiences can unlock value across customer touchpoints

  04-02-2026 07:23 via retailgazette.co.uk
  After years of steady change, grocery retail is now experiencing a surge of new behaviours that is reshaping how customers shop, retailers operate, and brands measure success.
  At this time of accelerated change, grocers can no longer see their digital and physical stores as separate channels. At the demand of the consumer, the two must be united and seamless.
  “We’re at an inflection point in grocery retail as customer expectations change faster than most retailers’ systems can
  
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• Kingfisher appoints Stephen Daintith as a non-executive director

  04-02-2026 07:03 via theretailbulletin.com
  Kingfisher has appointed Ocado chief financial officer Stephen Daintith as a non-executive director with effect from 1 April. Daintith has been chief financial officer of  Ocado... View Article
  
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