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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Dec- 2022 -19 December
Record Cyber Monday could signal last-minute Christmas shopping spree
International logistics provider fulfilmentcrowd believes that record Cyber Monday demand could signal a flurry of last-minute Christmas shopping and a boom in traditional Boxing Day and January sales. The company, which operates a network of 14 fulfilment centres and handles eCommerce orders for 500 retailers, reported a 27% increase year-on-year…
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19 December
Frasers acquires JD Sports’ premium fashion businesses
Frasers Group has announced the acquisition of JD Sports’ premium fashion offering in a deal worth up to £47.5m. The deal will see it acquire its rival interests in 15 fashion brands including Base Childrenswear, Choice, Clothingsites (including Brown Bag Clothing), Cricket, Giulio, Kids Cavern, Missy Empire, Nicholas Deakins, Pretty…
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19 December
Ikea UK profits fall by nearly a fifth despite £2.2bn in sales
Ikea UK has announced that its profits have fallen nearly a fifth to £49.6m, despite posting sales of £2.2bn for the full year ended 31 August 2022. The company’s total online sales grew to 36% compared to 19% in 2019. Consumers also returned to stores, with store visitation increasing by…
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19 December
Matalan founder to make final bid for group
John Hargreaves, the founder of fashion retailer Matalan, has announced his final offer to keep control of the company he founded in 1985. According to The Sunday Times, he has teamed up with Elliott Advisers, a private equity firm, for a 50-50 bid for Matalan. Hargreaves is reportedly expecting his…
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19 December
Sainsbury’s to invest £550m in keeping prices low
Sainsbury’s is set to invest £550m over two years to keep its prices low and be “more competitive”, CEO Simon Roberts has confirmed, with £15m to be invested over the Christmas period. Speaking to the Mail on Sunday, Roberts said that the move will mean that profits will be lower…
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16 December
Co-op launches partnership with Just Eat
Just Eat has teamed up with Co-op to launch an on-demand online delivery partnership. Initially rolling-out to 50 stores early next year, the service is expected to expand to over 1,000 Co-op stores by Spring 2023. Amy Heather, strategic accounts director, Just Eat UK, said: “We’re excited to launch our…
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16 December
Retail sales dip 0.4% in November
Black Friday and Christmas shopping has failed to lure people back to the high streets as the Office for National Statistics (ONS) estimates that retail sales have fallen by 0.4% in November 2022. The recent statistics follow a 0.6% rise in October when retail bounced back from the impact of…
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16 December
Consumer confidence remains at ‘historic lows’ in December
GfK’s Consumer Confidence Index increased by only two points in December to -42, with confidence still sitting at “historic lows”. This marked the eighth month in a row in which the Index has remained at around -40 or lower, the first time this has happened since the GfK’s records began…
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15 December
Bank of England raises interest rates by 0.5% to 3.5%
The Bank of England (BoE) has announced that interest rates will be raised by 0.5%, bringing the base rate of interest to 3.5%, the highest level in 14 years. At a meeting held on 14 December 2022, the Bank’s MPC voted by a majority of 6-3 to increase rates by…
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15 December
Currys falls to pre-tax loss of £17m in H1
Currys has fallen to a pre-tax loss of £17m for the half year ended 29 October 2022, down from profits of £45m the prior year, as it attributed its weak performance outside of UK&I to its competitors’ “heavy” discounting. In light of this, the group is now expecting its full…
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