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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Apr- 2019 -23 April
Hot weather increases high street footfall over Easter weekend
High street footfall over the Easter bank holiday weekend increased by 6.5% on Friday, 1.2% on Saturday and 8.4% by 12pm on Easter Monday, as a result of the hot and sunny weather. According to retail intelligence firm Springboard, the result is a “clear contrast” to Easter 2018, when poor…
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17 April
Over 100 Whitbread jobs face axe following Costa sale
Around 100 jobs are expected to be cut at the head office of Whitbread following the sale of Costa Coffee to Coca Cola for £3.9bn. According to reports by The Times, a consultation involving around 10% of the company’s head office staff was expected to be concluded this month, however…
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16 April
Card Factory profits fall as footfall hits LFL sales
Card Factory has reported in its latest full-year results that profit before tax fell by 8.3% to £66.6m as its like-for-like sales stagnated with a 0.1% decrease. The company attributed the fall in sales to a decrease in footfall across its 972 stores and a “tough consumer environment”. However its…
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16 April
JD Sports reports ‘record’ 15.4% profits jump
Sportswear retailer JD Sports has reported a 15.4% increase in pre-tax profits to £339.9m for the year ending 2 February 2019. Total like-for-like sales grew by 6% for global Sports Fashion fascias, against a backdrop of “widely reported retail challenges” in the group’s core UK market. The retailer also recorded…
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15 April
Mike Ashley warned over plans for retail ‘oligopoly’
Former Marks and Spencer boss Lord Stuart Rose has warned Mike Ashley over plans for a retail ‘oligopoly’, following his attempted acquisition of embattled department store chain Debenhams. According to a report by Aol.com, Rose said he would “think twice about building an empire of high street chains”, and he…
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15 April
Springboard predicts Easter weekend footfall to ‘bounce back’
According to retail experts Springboard, Easter weekend UK footfall is forecast to rise by +2.1%, bringing a “sigh of relief” to high streets and retail parks in what has been a challenging year. The forecast expects a “bounce back” over the key trading period from what was a poor Easter…
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12 April
March sees first YOY non-food footfall rise
March saw the first year-on-year rise in footfall in non-food stores for over two years rising by 1.6% since February, according to Ipsos’ Retail Performance Retail Traffic Index. Average weekly footfall was also up on the previous month, by 4.4% and was up across all parts of the UK. Ipsos…
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11 April
World’s largest Primark opens in Birmingham
Primark has opened the biggest store in its worldwide portfolio, in Birmingham. The new 161,000 square foot store will be spread across five floors and will feature a Disney cafe, two restaurants, a barber shop and a beauty studio. For the first time, the new Primark will feature a homeware…
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11 April
Quiz revenues fall short of expectations
Omni-channel fashion brand Quiz has reported a 12% increase in revenues to £130.9m for the financial year ending 31 March 2019. However, the final result is lower than the Quiz board had previously anticipated, after announcing that its target for FY 2019 would be approximately £133m. This was adjusted to…
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11 April
US deal puts dent in WHSmith profits
WHSmith’s profit before tax dropped by 21% to £65m, following the retailer’s acquisition of American airport store In Motion for £155m late last year. According to its interim results for the six months ended 28 February 2019, excluding In Motion, its travel revenue saw its profit rise 7% to £44m…
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