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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Oct- 2025 -7 October
Matalan strengthens senior leadership team
Matalan has announced a series of senior hires, within buying and design, trading and merchandising, customer and loyalty, and e-commerce. Jo Bennett has joined the company as director of buying and design to lead Matalan’s product and design strategy, bringing experience from Tu clothing and John Lewis, where she led…
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7 October
Majestic launches recruitment drive for 150 festive and permanent roles
Majestic, the UK’s largest specialist wine retailer, has begun recruiting 150 new staff as it prepares for the busy Christmas trading period. The company is hiring a mix of permanent and temporary employees across its 216 shops. The expansion aims to strengthen its workforce ahead of the festive season and…
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7 October
B&M shares fall as profits slide 28% to £198m
B&M has seen its shares slide in early trading after it revealed its pre-tax profits fell 28% to £198m, down from £274m, in the six months to the end of September. The performance comes despite seeing revenues improve 4% to £2.7bn, primarily driven by B&M UK volume growth and ASP…
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7 October
Victorian Plumbing sees revenues jump 5% amid market decline in FY25
Victorian Plumbing has reported a 5% rise in full-year revenue to about £310m for the 12 months to 30 September 2025, in line with market expectations, despite a wider fall in the UK home improvements and DIY market. The group stated that the broader market declined by around 3% over…
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7 October
M&S to close 11 cafes as part of estate overhaul
Marks and Spencer is to close 11 cafés across its smaller food stores as part of an ongoing restructuring of its retail estate.The company said the move aims to create more space for its range of M&S food products. According to The Independent, no jobs will be lost, and all…
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7 October
Vestiaire Collective appoints new CEO
Paris-based fashion resale platform Vestiaire Collective has announced the appointment of Bernard Osta as chief executive, succeeding Maximilian Bittner, who has led the company for the past seven years. Osta joined Vestiaire Collective in May 2021 and has held senior leadership roles including chief strategy officer and, most recently, chief…
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6 October
Lidl invests £250m in cutting prices for customers
Lidl GB has announced a £250m investment in cutting prices of everyday items, as it bids to help “shoppers save even more in the run-up to Christmas”. The discounter said it had lowered prices on more than 1,000 product lines since the start of the year, with the latest funding…
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6 October
Harrods falls to FY loss as it sets aside £60m for abuse victims
Harrods has fallen to a pre-tax loss of £34.3m in its latest full-year results, as it set aside more than £60m as part of plans to compensate abuse victims of former chairman and owner Mohamed Al Fayed. Michael Ward, managing director of Harrods, said its pre-tax loss was in part…
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6 October
Cotswold Company owner hires advisers for potential sale
Private equity firm True, the owner of The Cotswold Company, has reportedly appointed Arrowpoint Advisory to help prepare furniture and homewares retailer for a future sale, according to Sky News. True, which has owned the business since 2016, is understood to have asked the Rothschild-owned advisory firm to draw up…
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6 October
John Lewis appoints new director of merchandising
John Lewis has appointed Anna Milne as its new director of merchandising, a new role that will be part of John Lewis management board. Most recently, she has been the merchandising director for the luxury lifestyle brands Net-A-Porter and Mr Porter. Milne has nearly 20 years of experience in retail,…
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