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 -12 January
Bain Capital and CVC eye Boots takeover bid
Buyout firms Bain Capital and CVC Capital Partners have reportedly joined forces in an attempt to launch a takeover bid for high street chemist Boots. According to Sky News, Bain and CVC are assembling a joint bid and are said to have hired advisers from Lazard to help put a…
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12 January
DFS expects FY22 profits to reach £85m
DFS Furniture expects to report full-year pre-tax profits of £85m after experiencing strong Christmas sales. During the twenty-six week period to 26 December 2021, gross sales increased by 10% when compared with FY19, but were 2% lower than in 2020. Covid-related absences, supplier manufacturing capacity and logistics performance, reportedly affected…
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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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