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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Sep- 2019 -25 September
Boohoo revenues spike 43% in half-year results
Online clothing retailer Boohoo has seen its revenues skyrocket by 43% to £564.9m for the six months to 31 August 2019. This was a result of “strong momentum” across the business, driving revenue growth in all of its brands and in all key focus territories. The group added it is…
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24 September
Online retail sales drag in August
Retail sales in August saw low growth of just 3% year-on-year according to the latest IMRG Capgemini eRetail Sales Index, and comes after online sales slumped to its lowest ever July growth last month. According to the report, August’s result falls “well below” the five-year average of +9.6%, as well…
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24 September
Sports Direct announces five more Jack Wills closures
Sports Direct has revealed the locations of a further five Jack Wills stores set to close, following its acquisition of the clothing retailer. Sports Direct has earmarked its Bluewater, Oxford, Newcastle, Winchester and London Gatwick airport as the next stores to shutter. The company, which closed eight Jack Wills stores…
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24 September
Moss Bros H1 sales dragged down by hire business
Menswear retailer Moss Bros has posted a marginal 1.4% increase in total group revenue to £65.4m for the 26 weeks ended 27 July 2019. Sales were dragged by the retailer’s hire business, which fell by 14.7% on a like-for-like basis and represented only 10.7% of total sales in the half,…
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23 September
Marks & Spencer CFO exits
Marks and Spencer (M&S) has announced that its group chief financial officer, Humphrey Singer, has decided to leave the business. M&S said Singer will work with Steve Rowe, group chief executive officer, and the board to ensure an “orderly transition”. A departure date has not yet been decided and will…
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23 September
Bailiffs visit 310 premises a day over business rates, study finds
Councils across England are sending bailiffs to 310 companies a day over business rates arrears, new figures show. The investigation by the real estate adviser Altus Group revealed that, during the last financial year, for 2018/19, over 78,000 non-domestic properties from shops to restaurants to pubs to factories to offices…
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23 September
Thomas Cook shutters 600 retail stores amid company collapse
British tour operator Thomas Cook has announced that all of the companies in its group, including Thomas Cook Airlines, have ceased trading, leaving over 21,000 staff out of work. As a result, all 600 of Thomas Cook’s retail shops have now closed, and comes after the company was denied a…
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20 September
Eve Sleep issues profit warning as Simba merger talks end
Mattress retailer Eve Sleep has issued a profit warning, after merger talks with Simba Sleep, first announced on 12 August, have collapsed. The group’s board said it decided that now is “not the right time to pursue the potential merger” and that it was more appropriate to focus on its…
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20 September
High Court rejects legal challenge against Debenhams CVA
The High Court has rejected the legal challenge against Debenhams proposed CVA, which was funded by Mike Ashley’s Sports Direct. The challenge was made by the Combined Property Control Group (CPC) – the landlord of six Debenhams stores in England as it argued the CVA was “designed to create a…
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19 September
Next profits boosted by continued online growth in H1
Fashion retailer Next has recorded a 2.7% rise in profits for the 26 weeks to July 2019, aided by a 12.6% increase in online sales. Pre-tax profits for the first half of the year were £319.6m compared with £311.1m for the same period last year. Total brand sales also increased…
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