News
News is Retail Sector’s central hub for breaking stories, market developments and company updates from across the UK retail industry. This category delivers authoritative, timely coverage on everything from trading performance and executive changes to store openings, brand activity and supply chain developments.
Retail Sector’s news coverage focuses on the business realities behind the headlines — providing retail professionals with context on how each development impacts operations, strategy and market confidence. Readers can expect clear, accurate reporting designed to keep decision-makers informed and competitive in a fast-moving retail landscape.
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Aug- 2018 -21 August
Office Outlet announces CVA proposal
Stationery retailer Office Outlet has announced a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) proposal to restructure its UK store estate as part of its ongoing turnaround strategy. The retail chain formerly known as Staples has spent the last two years performing an operational restructuring which it said has “significantly improved” its store…
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20 August
Amazon ‘aggressive bidders’ for empty Homebase stores
Retail giant Amazon is looking to purchase empty Homebase stores from new owner Hilco in order to help increase its delivery capabilities. According to the Telegraph the online retailer is seeking to purchase the stores due to a shortage of warehouse stock in the UK, forcing retailers to look for…
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20 August
Office Outlet to ask for three-year rent-free period in CVA
Stationery retail chain Office Outlet is expected to make a Company Voluntary Agreement (CVA) announcement today (Monday 18 August) in which it may seek a three-year rent-free period for its stores. The Sunday Times reported that Deloitte would be handling the company’s impending CVA and 20 of its stores may…
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20 August
300 stores ‘could shut’ amid Sainsbury’s Asda merger
The result of the Sainsbury’s Asda merger could see up to 300 stores be forced to close if the merger was to go ahead according to new research. Analysis by The Times, which used modelling techniques used by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and found that up to 300…
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20 August
House of Fraser woes push Mulberry into £3m loss
Designer fashion brand Mulberry has issued a profit warning following the financial woes of House of Fraser. With the company, saying it expects to absorb costs of £3m due to the chain’s restructuring, the company’s shares dropped by 30% following the announcement. Mulberry operates 21 House of Fraser concessions, employing…
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17 August
Debenhams to axe 90 jobs
Debenhams has announced it is to cut 90 jobs as part of a restructuring plan to focus the business on key areas. The department store is also currently in redundancy talks with 200 head office workers as part of the last stage of its cost cutting plan. In a statement…
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17 August
Asda reports fifth consecutive quarter of sales growth
Asda has reported its fifth consecutive quarter of sales growth after it posted a 0.4% increase in like-for-like sales. The results represent the first time that the supermarket has outperformed the market since 2014. Removing the impact of Easter, like-for-like sales in the quarter grew by 2.6%. The increase in…
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17 August
House of Fraser cancels all online orders
Struggling retailer House of Fraser has cancelled all online orders and will refund customers who have not received their products. This comes only days after the retailer announced on Twitter that “orders would be delivered as soon as possible”. In the tweet, the company added that due to recent changes…
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17 August
Marks and Spencer replaces switchboard staff with AI
Marks and Spencer will be replacing its call centre employees with AI technology, cloud communications platform Twilio has announced. The technology will be delivered by Twilio across 640 M&S stores and 13 UK-based contact centre hubs. The project to migrate the retail chain’s switchboard operation took less than six months…
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16 August
Philip Day eyeing House of Fraser stores
Philip Day, the owner of Edinburgh Woollen Mill is reportedly in talks with landlord groups regarding a takeover of several House of Fraser stores. Day is talking to 10 to 15 landlords with a view to running them as Days Department Stores according to Drapers. Rents and leases on House of…
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