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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Jan- 2022 -11 January
Consumer spending rises 12.2% in December
Consumer card spending increased 12.2% in December compared to the same period in 2019, as Brits finished their final preparations for Christmas, according to data from Barclaycard. Barclaycard revealed that spending on essential items grew 13.7%, driven by a 13.9% rise in supermarket shopping, as consumers stocked up on food…
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11 January
Footfall declines as workers stay away from office
Footfall declined by -6% last week across all UK destinations from the week before, but working from home continued to heavily influence footfall with footfall dropping by -25.6% in Central London, according to Springboard. In comparison, local high streets experienced a far more modest decline from the week before; in…
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7 January
Poundland unveils plans to open four larger stores
Poundland has announced plans to open four new large format stores this year as part of its “ambitious” transformation targets. The retailer also revealed plans to bring its chilled and frozen food ranges to around 100 more stores between now and the end of its financial year in September. The…
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6 January
Omicron rise leads to significant footfall drop off
Footfall across all UK retail destinations in December was -18.6% below the 2019 level, the worst result since August and a significant drop off from November when it stood at -14.5% below 2019, according to Springboard. It revealed that footfall in December was “clearly impacted” by the rapid spread of…
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5 January
M&S launches lower carbon diet initiative
Marks and Spencer is launching its Sparking Change National Challenge, inviting its 14 million customers to try a lower carbon diet. During the two-month Challenge, customers will have access to recipes, practical tips and a Sparks Live cook-along event hosted by chef Chris Baber. Available through Sparks, Marks and Spencer’s…
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5 January
Pepco Group CEO steps down due to health reasons
Poundland owner Pepco Group has announced that CEO Andy Bond will step down at the end of March due to health reasons. As a result, the board has appointed Trevor Masters, currently group COO and MD of Pepco, to the role of interim CEO from 31 March 2022. He will…
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4 January
Retailers see New Year’s Eve footfall boost
Retailers saw a pleasant end to the year with footfall rising 5.2% on New Year’s Eve, according to the latest figures from Springboard. This is a sharp contrast with New Year’s Eve 2019 when high street footfall declined by -9% from the week before. It comes despite a footfall drop…
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Dec- 2021 -23 December
Redevco acquires Oxford shopping centre for £38.8m
Redevco, one of Europe’s largest privately-owned real estate investment managers, has acquired Templars Square in Oxford for £38.8m from New River. Templars Square, which lies 2.5 miles (4 kms) south-east of Oxford’s city centre, is a covered mall-based shopping centre with some open-air and street-facing retail units, two car parks…
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23 December
December retail sales slow amid Omicron impact, CBI warns
Retail sales growth slowed in the year-to-December to 8%, down from 39% last month, as the impact of the Omicron variant affected trading. According to the latest CBI monthly Distributive Trades Survey, despite the new restriction, retail sales were seen broadly in line with seasonal norms in December, having been…
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21 December
UK high streets suffer as Covid concerns grow
UK high streets saw footfall decline by -2.6% over pre-Christmas weekend, according to the latest figures from Springboard. Although footfall across UK retail destinations rose by 5.5% last week from the week before, it ended with a disappointing performance, felt especially by large city centres, with footfall over the weekend…
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