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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Aug- 2018 -7 August
New Look reports profit rise
New Look has reported it has stabilised its profits, supported by an overachievement of its cost savings. For the 13 weeks to 29 June 2018 the retailer’s EBITDA was up 1.5% to £27.6m, which was stabilised by £70m annualised cost savings in Q1. Its underlying operating profit up 19% at…
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6 August
Game and HMV report ‘impressive’ sales growth
Entertainment retailers HMV and Game have reported an increase in shares of physical entertainment sales for the 3 months to 1 July, despite the overall market declining by 11%. The latest data on the physical entertainment market from Kantar Worldpanel shows a return to growth for mint games, supported by…
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6 August
House of Fraser able to proceed with store closures after legal row ends
House of Fraser has settled its legal row with landlords meaning it can proceed with plans to close 31 of its 59 stores. Landlords had previously argued that slashing rents to support the department store’s rescue plan was unfair. The department store said it was “focused on concluding discussions with…
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6 August
Footfall drops in July as customers avoid high street in heatwave
The heatwave drew customers away from the high street in July, as footfall fell by 10.8% compared with the same month in 2017. According to the Ipsos Retail Traffic Index, footfall was down in all regions compared with July 2017 with Scotland and Northern Ireland seeing 6.5% less shoppers on…
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3 August
Retail salaries hit a five-month high but majority still feel underpaid
Average salaries for retail roles hit a five-month high in July, as pay increased by 1.1% month-on-month according to new data from independent job board CV-Library. However, despite salaries for retail roles seeing positive growth, a seperate survey by the group found that nearly two-thirds (62.2%) of retail professionals believe…
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3 August
Selfridges open ‘Christmas Shop’ four months before the festive period
Selfridges has opened its ‘Christmas Shop’ four months before the festive period, with the department store claiming the decision was made to appease overseas visitors with whom the range is popular. The shop is expected to be fully stocked by September with over 4,000 items, including souvenir pencils priced at…
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2 August
Scotland sees ‘disappointing’ retail sales rise
Scottish government figures have found that retail sales in the country have risen by 0.3% between April and June compared with the three previous months. The UK as a whole saw a retail rise in sales volume of 2.8% according to the Office of National Statistics (ONS), the value of…
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1 August
C.banner pulls out of House of Fraser rescue
C.banner has pulled out its House of Fraser rescue deal worth £150m due to a dive in its share price. The Hamley’s owner said the deal had been “rendered impracticable and inadvisable” following the fall. House of Fraser is now urgently seeking a £50m investment in order to avoid collapse.…
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1 August
Zara unveils new delivery plans to compete with Asos and Boohoo
Zara has announced new delivery plans in order to compete with Asos and Boohoo, the new plans will see it combine its physical and online inventories. The combined inventories will mean items will be shipped from stores, with customers who live closer to stores will be able to get their…
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1 August
Next sales grow 2.8% but shares slump
Next’s shares slumped 6% in early trading, despite the retailer reporting sales growth of 2.8% – boosted by the hot weather – in its latest results. The clothing retailer said in its trading update for the 12 weeks ending 28 July online sales were up 12.5%, but in its retail…
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