High Street
The latest news, updates and analysis on the the British High Street and 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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Jun- 2020 -24 June
UK footfall jumps 45% during first week of retail trading
Footfall across all UK retail destinations rose by 45% during the first week of non-essential retail reopening (15 June) compared with the previous week, according to new data from Springboard. The retail insights firm said the clearest indication of the impact of non-essential retail reopening is evident from the uplifts…
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23 June
Convenience store sales outpace growth of overall grocery market in June
Sales at UK convenience stores grew by almost a fifth (17%) in the last four weeks ending 13 June 2020, as UK consumers in lockdown prioritise shopping at their most local and convenient store. This is according to new data from Nielsen, which found that demand for convenience shopping had…
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23 June
Shoe Zone to make redundancies as 20 shops close
Footwear retailer Shoe Zone has revealed that 20 of its stores will not open post-lockdown, resulting in a number of its staff being made redundant. The news comes after the company reported a loss of £2.5m for the 26 weeks to 4 April 2020, compared with a profit of £1m…
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22 June
Mothercare seeks new lenders amid franchising plans
Mothercare has confirmed it remains “on track” to become a “profitable” international franchise operation, with plans to operate in around 40 international territories. In its latest update, the retailer confirmed that discussions are ongoing with existing franchise partners in efforts to “establish a more sustainable and less capital-intensive business” going…
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19 June
92% of shopworkers oppose longer Sunday working hours, says Usdaw
Some 92% of retail staff in England have opposed large shops opening for more than six hours on a Sunday, as the government considers deregulating Sunday trading. According to a survey by shopworkers trade union Usdaw, 66% of the 11,000 retail staff said they feel they are pressured to work…
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18 June
Long Tall Sally to cease trading after 45 years
Womens fashion retailer Long Tall Sally is to cease trading after nearly 45 years. In a statement released on its site, the fashion retailer said the changing economics of retail, along with “fierce competition” have hit the company hard, along with the “profound impact” of Covid-19 pandemic further weakening its…
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18 June
Supreme Court rules against Mastercard and Visa in interchange fees battle
Visa and Mastercard could be set to pay billions in compensation to some of the UK’s top retailers following a court ruling which found that the two payment companies had breached competition laws. The Supreme Court today (17 June) unanimously upheld the conclusion of the Court of Appeal that the…
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17 June
Debenhams opens 38 more stores following ‘successful’ Monday reopening
Department store chain Debenhams has announced it will reopen a further 38 stores in England, following the “successful reopening” of 50 of its stores earlier this week. Debenhams revealed that four stores have also reopened in Northern Ireland, whilst the business awaits confirmation from Wales and Scotland as to when…
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15 June
Travis Perkins to cut 2,500 jobs amid Covid-19 pandemic
Wickes owner Travis Perkins has revealed plans to cut almost 2,500 jobs amid the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. It comes amid a consultation process regarding the closure of around 165 branches across its overall estate, representing approximately 8% of the group’s network. The company said branch closures will be concentrated in…
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15 June
Usdaw urges public to ‘respect shopworkers’ as shops are allowed to reopen
Shopworkers union Usdaw has urged customers to respect staff and employers to ensure safety in stores, as shops are allowed to reopen from today (15 June). The news comes as Usdaw released statistics revealing one in six shop workers have suffered abuse on every shift, during the coronavirus pandemic. The…
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