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Oct- 2025 -3 October
D2C: From Ding Dong to Tik Tok
2025 is a milestone year for UK D2C retail body the UK Direct Selling Association, with the organisation celebrating its 60th year, and marking six decades in which all areas of retail – not least D2C – have borne witness to significant consumer change. Established in 1965 to ‘represent the…
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Sep- 2025 -29 September
The dos and don’ts of installing EV chargers at retail parks
Electric vehicle (EV) adoption is accelerating across the UK, and retail parks are uniquely suited to support this shift. With more EVs on the road, the demand for good locations to charge is paramount. With their large car parks and numerous amenities, retail parks are well suited for hosting an…
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10 September
Rethinking retail rewards in an era of ad fatigue
UK consumers are navigating a relentless wave of marketing exposure. Estimates suggest the average person sees between 6,000 and 10,000 brand messages each day, and nearly a quarter (23.7%) of adults now actively block ads online. For retailers, this raises a fundamental challenge: if customers are tuning out, how do…
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Aug- 2025 -28 August
How retailers can keep frontline staff from feeling undervalued and overstressed
In retail, the shop floor is where the customer experience comes to life. It’s where expectations are met — or missed. Yet for decades, frontline employees, the people most directly responsible for shaping that experience, have often been left without the tools, recognition, and support they need to thrive. For…
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27 August
Is M&S signalling a structural shift in property strategy?
Mainstream retailers are increasingly treading on the discounters’ turf – and it appears that out-of-town retail parks are now the prime battleground. Few recent examples demonstrate this as clearly as Marks & Spencer’s strategy, which is pivoting its food hall rollout toward retail park sites in order to compete directly…
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26 August
How EV charging increases footfall and boosts customer loyalty
As the rate of EV adoption among the public increases, more drivers are looking for places to charge their EVs. This trend is only going to accelerate, especially considering the Government’s recent series of incentives and grants to make EVs more affordable. This is a key moment for retail site…
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22 August
Retail media: Hugh Stevens on the data that powers the future
Retail media has emerged from the periphery of marketing strategy into one of the most dynamic and rapidly evolving sectors in modern commerce. At the centre of that transformation is a growing recognition that first-party data—properly governed, connected, and activated—offers retailers and brands unprecedented opportunities to collaborate, personalise, and grow.…
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21 August
Curating the clutter: How brands can cut-through product overwhelm
Consumers are met with an overwhelming volume of information each day, leading to decision fatigue that can make it difficult to choose products, and even cause them to abandon their shopping baskets altogether. When this happens, shoppers are more likely to stick to a well-known brand or pick up the…
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13 August
It’s time we had a system that stopped taxing retailers as if it were 1599
Our high streets have had a tough time in recent years – battered by a global pandemic, war, energy shocks and soaring inflation. Yet despite it all, shops have kept going – serving their communities, creating jobs, and showing remarkable resilience. But resilience isn’t a plan for growth, and nostalgia…
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Jul- 2025 -17 July
What will separate supply chain winners and losers in the years to come
For decades, logistics and supply chain operations have been the unsung heroes of commerce—efficiently humming behind the scenes, away from public attention. But in a world shaped by pandemic shocks, geopolitical tensions, and shifting consumer expectations, supply chains have stepped into the spotlight. For Emile Naus, Partner at BearingPoint, this…
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