News
The latest news, updates and analysis on the the UK retail industry. Covering every segment of the market, Retail Sector’s business journalists keep you in the picture.
-
Sep- 2023 -22 September
Ocado shares suffer worst fall in 11 years
Online supermarket Ocado saw its shares plummet 20% yesterday, its worst fall in 11 years, as a result of being downgraded by a city broker. The 20% drop wiped nearly £1.4bn off of the company’s overall value and slashed £32m of value off of co-founder and chief executive Tim Steiner’s…
Read More » -
22 September
Currys to recruit for over 1,100 roles ahead of ‘peak’ trading
Technology retailer Currys has today announced plans to create over 1,100 new roles during this year’s “peak” trading period. To support the business through the “busiest” time of the year – the period leading up to Black Friday through to the January sales – 720 temporary roles have been made…
Read More » -
22 September
Mothercare revenues decline in FY23
Mothercare has reported that underlying profits slipped from £12m last year to £6.7m in the financial year ended 25 March, despite a 9% increase in net worldwide retail sales by franchise partners to £322.7m. As a result, the group’s net borrowing reached £12.4m in FY23, widening from £9.9m recorded at…
Read More » -
22 September
Retail sales recover in August, says ONS
Retail sales have risen 0.4% in August compared to a slight fall of 1.1% in July, according to new data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). When compared with their pre-covid level in February 2020, total retail sales were 17.3% higher in value terms, but volumes were 1.5% lower.…
Read More » -
21 September
Today’s news in brief-21/09/23
Wilko’s administrators PwC are reportedly set to begin a review of dividend payouts totalling £77m to investors over the past decade. The review will focus on payouts to the Wilkinson family and other investors leading up to the retailer’s decline. Notably, despite posting losses of £39m, Wilko paid out a…
Read More » -
21 September
Footasylum opens Oxford Street flagship
Sportswear retailer Footasylum has opened its flagship store at 73-89 Oxford Street in London, as it continues to see strong demand for its branded streetwear offering. The new 20,000 sq ft store opened to the public today (21 September) and trades across two floors, with additional customer service and click-and-collect…
Read More » -
21 September
Aldi to sponsor nationwide beach cleanup project
Aldi has announced it is backing the Marine Conservation Society’s Beachwatch programme with a £50,000 sponsorship. The supermarket has become the biggest corporate funder of the Marine Conservation Society’s beach cleaning and litter survey project, Beachwatch, which aims to support more than 15,000 volunteers to participate in 1,200 local beach…
Read More » -
21 September
Bank of England keeps interest rates unchanged at 5.25%
Following 14 straight rate rises, the Bank of England (BoE) has kept interest rates unchanged at 5.25%. At its latest meeting, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted by a slim majority of 5–4 to maintain the current rate, though four members preferred to increase the rate to 5.5%. The MPC…
Read More » -
21 September
Secret Sales acquires Spanish online fashion retailer Dreivip.com
Secret Sales has announced the acquisition of Dreivip.com – the Spanish discount retailer – for an undisclosed sum. Secret Sales said the deal Forms the start of an aggressive merger and acquisition (M&A) strategy and follows its recent expansion into the Netherlands and Belgium, making this the third European territory…
Read More » -
21 September
JD Sports revenues up 8% in H1
JD Sports revenues grew by 8% to £4.7bn in the 26 weeks to 29 July, as gross margins were “robust” at 48% and well above pre-pandemic levels due to a more normal promotional environment in H1. The group said its profit before tax and adjusted items of £373.5m also reflected…
Read More »
