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.
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Jul- 2023 -24 July
Leading retail associations ask Ofgem to challenge hidden energy costs
Leading associations from sectors including retail have signed an open letter organised by leading not-for-profit energy consultancy Box Power CIC challenging the energy regulator Ofgem to take ‘immediate’ action on hidden charges by energy brokers. Eight leading groups – UKHospitality, Care England, the British Retail Consortium, the Federation of Independent…
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24 July
Matalan expects profits to improve despite drop in revenues
Matalan has revealed it expects its FY24 EBITDA of £60m-£65m, up from £30.6m in FY23, despite seeing its revenues fall in the 13 weeks to 27 May 2023 fall 8% to £263.6m. The retailer also revealed that its revenues improved to £122.5m, up from £116.1m, in the five weeks to…
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24 July
Adidas receives $565m in orders for first batch of unsold Yeezys
Adidas has sold around 4 million Yeezy shoes for $565m ( £440.7m) in an online sale after serving ties with Kanye West, according to the Financial Times. The news comes after the German group terminated its agreement with Kanye West in October after the rapper and fashion designer made antisemitic…
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24 July
Footfall drops by 3.5% amid July train strikes
As the RMT rail strike hit most of the UK on 20 July, footfall dropped by -3.5% from last week over the period up to 1pm, according to new data from MRI Springboard. Footfall declined in all three key destination types, by -5.9% in high streets, by -1.1% in shopping…
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24 July
UK retail M&A deals increase to a five-year high
The number of M&A deals targeting UK retailers has increased 23% over the last year, from 31 deals in the year ending March 2022 to 38 in the year ending March 2023. These are the highest levels seen in five years, according to research by international law firm RPC. In…
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24 July
Revolution Beauty faces FCA probe over market abuse
Revolution Beauty has revealed that the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has launched an investigation into the retailer over potential breaches of market abuse regulation. The investigation will examine potential breaches that occurred between July 2021 and September 2022. Revolution Beauty said in a statement: “The Financial Conduct Authority has today…
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24 July
Ocado wins £200m payout over patent battle
Ocado has won a £200m settlement from Autostore to put to an end the company’s global patent dispute. A settlement was reached to avoid further litigation and as a result Ocado retains exclusive rights to the Single Space Robot. Ocado will receive the payout from Autostore in instalments across two…
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21 July
Retail competition not responsible for high food inflation, CMA finds
A new report from the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has found that high food price inflation has not been driven by retail competition. Over the past two months, the CMA has assessed how retail competition is working in the UK grocery sector, particularly between supermarkets such as Asda, Morrisons,…
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21 July
Hot weather boosts June retail sales
June retail sales beat forecasts in June, rising 0.7% compared with predictions of 0.2%, as hot weather helped encourage shoppers. According to the latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), non-food stores sales volumes rose by 1.0% in June 2023, following a fall of 0.5% in May 2023…
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21 July
Marks and Spencer chief slams ‘pathetic’ Marble Arch rejection
The chief executive of Marks and Spencer has slammed the government’s decision to deny the demolition and redevelopment of its flagship store on Oxford Street as “pathetic”. The company planned to demolish the existing three buildings and construct a larger 2 basement and nine-storey mixed-use development containing a retail store,…
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