Clothing & Shoes
The latest news, updates and analysis on the clothing and shoes segment of the the UK retail industry. Sign up to the Daily Briefing and let Retail Sector’s business journalists keep you in the picture.
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Mar- 2020 -26 March
Arcadia ends fixed-term contracts early in view of Covid-19
Philip Green’s Arcadia Group has reportedly informed its employees that it will be ending fixed-term contracts early as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. In a letter seen by Drapers, the fashion retailer said that the retail industry has been “significantly impacted” by high levels of “consumer uncertainty” and as…
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26 March
Asos ‘playing Russian roulette’ with employees, says GMB Union
Asos has been accused of “playing Russian roulette with people’s lives” by the GMB Union, one of the largest trade unions in the UK and Ireland. The union claims that social distancing has not been enforced in the fashion retailer’s “packed” warehouses amid the coronavirus pandemic. It is now calling…
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23 March
N Brown reveals measures to mitigate ‘sudden reduction’ in demand
N Brown Group has revealed a series of measures it has undertaken to help mitigate the “significant and sudden reduction” in demand it has experienced amid the coronavirus outbreak. In a trading update this morning (23 March), the group said that trading for the first two weeks of the financial…
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20 March
TK Maxx closes UK stores amid Covid-19 virus outbreak
Discount store TK Maxx has become the latest retailer to take the decision to temporarily close its stores amid the recent outbreak of coronavirus. TK Maxx has announced all stores in the United States, Canada, Europe and Australia have will close for two weeks. The company has also announced it…
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19 March
Zara closes almost 4,000 stores globally amid coronavirus outbreak
The parent company of Zara has closed almost 4,000 of its stores across the globe amid the recent outbreak of the coronavirus. Inditex warned the pandemic has had a “significant impact” in certain markets resulting in temporary closures of 3,785 of its stores, as the group was forced to close…
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18 March
Superdry to miss 2020 targets amid coronavirus outbreak
Embattled clothing retailer Superdry has said it expects its online sales to decline and to miss its 2020 targets amid “unpredictable challenges” caused by the coronavirus outbreak. Superdry reported a 25% decrease in footfall week-on-week despite stores in the UK and the US “remaining largely open”. Prior to the outbreak…
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17 March
Laura Ashley enters administration as coronavirus claims first casualty
Embattled home and fashion retailer Laura Ashley has fallen into administration after it revealed that the coronavirus outbreak has had an “immediate and significant impact on trading”. The company revealed that, while trading had improved by 24% year-on-year for the seven weeks up to 13 March, as well as directors…
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17 March
H&M sales increase despite being ‘negatively impacted’ by Covid-19
Fashion retailer H&M has reported a rise in sales in its first-quarter results, despite being “negatively impacted” by the outbreak of Covid-19. For the period ended 1 December 2019, H&M reported an 8% increase in net sales to SEK 54,988m (£46,609m) compared with £51m in the year prior. H&M said…
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16 March
Primark owner shares dive after it warns of coronavirus impact
Primark owner Associated British Foods (ABF Foods) has seen its shares dive in early trading after it announced that the closure of its European stores due to coronavirus could leave a hole of £190m in sales. Shares in the company dropped by 100% this morning (16 March) to £0.01p per…
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13 March
Gap sales increase despite ‘challenging year’
Fashion retailer Gap has reported a 1% increase in net sales to $4.7bn (£3.7bn) in its fourth quarter results, despite a “challenging year”. Interim CEO Bob Fisher said the company began to see “stabilisation” in Q4, driven “primarily by improvements in Old Navy’s performance”. However, Gap, the parent company of…
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