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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Jul- 2020 -10 July
Online retail sales continue to boom despite reopenings
Even as the high street came out of hibernation last month, June’s online retail sales spiked to a 12-year high of +33.9% YoY, according to IMRG Capgemini’s Online Retail Index. It revealed that last month’s acceleration in online sales was underpinned by the “continued success” of almost every category. Electrical…
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10 July
Footfall decline eases amid ‘sluggish’ recovery
Footfall across the UK rose by 19% in June against the month prior, but was still down by 62.6% year-on-year, according to the latest figures from the BRC. In the first two weeks of the month, footfall decline averaged 77.1%, but this improved to 53.3% in the remaining three weeks…
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10 July
Alex Russo appointed B&M CFO
Discount retailer B&M has appointed Alex Russo as CFO and executive director, with effect from 16 November 2020. Further to the announcement made on 3 March 2020, Russo will join the company as the CFO designate on 5 October 2020. He succeeds Paul McDonald, who will retire from the board…
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10 July
Usdaw ‘disappointed’ PM fails to back shop worker protection law
Retail trade union Usdaw has criticised the prime minister for failing to back a new law to protect shop workers from violence. The trade union has called for a firm commitment from the government to take all available actions to tackle the issue. The news comes as Usdaw revealed one…
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9 July
West Midlands man arrested on suspicion of £495,000 furlough fraud
A West Midlands man has been arrested as part of an HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) investigation into a suspected £495,000 Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) fraud. HMRC officers executed a search warrant on 8 July 2020 in the Solihull area and arrested the 57-year-old. This is the first arrest…
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9 July
Boots set to slash 4,000 jobs
Boots is reportedly set to slash almost 4,000 roles as it seeks to restructure its head office and store teams. The company said it is “moving swiftly” to address the impact of Covid-19 on the Boots business by accelerating its transformation plan. The proposed plan included a reorganisation of the…
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9 July
John Lewis shutters eight stores, 1,300 jobs at risk
John Lewis has confirmed it will not be reopening eight sites across the UK, and will now enter into consultation with impacted employees across its estate. The move will reportedly place 1,300 jobs at risk. The sites that are now set to close their doors include its travel hub shops…
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9 July
Aldi to remove over 2 billion pieces of plastic by 2025
Discount grocer Aldi has pledged to reduce the volume of plastic packaging used by 50% by 2025. The new commitment will see the chain remove 74,000 tonnes of plastic packaging during the next five years, the equivalent to 2.2 billion single items of plastic. To achieve this target, Aldi said…
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9 July
Frasers Group to stop rent payments until it can ‘freely trade’
Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group has reportedly told landlords that it will withhold rent payments until it is “fully able to freely trade as a business”. According to a letter seen by Estates Gazette, the Sports Direct owner said although it is willing to enter negotiations with landlords but said that…
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9 July
OnBuy preps for global expansion
OnBuy has announced it will launch globally this summer, after securing a £5m investment. It comes as the online marketplace said it has seen “record sales” increase by 1100% in the past year, and now expects to be turning over £2bn in sales by 2024. The retailer said it will…
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