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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Feb- 2020 -3 February
Hawkin’s Bazaar confirms final stores closures
Embattled retailer Hawkin’s Bazaar confirmed its final store closures over the weekend as part of its administration process. The joint administrators of Hawkin’s Bazaar Limited, Tom Straw and Simon Thomas of Moorfields Advisory Limited, revealed that all of its stores were to close after the weekend of 2 February. Straw,…
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3 February
Iceland launches trial to reduce plastic packaging by 93%
Iceland has revealed it will be reducing plastic packaging by 93% across its range of fresh produce. The trial launched on 22 January in 33 of its stores across London and the South East region and will see the frozen food retailer remove or “significantly” reduce the plastic content in…
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3 February
Angling Direct appoints new board director
Angling Direct has announced that Dilys Maltby will join the board of the company as a non-executive director with immediate effect. The fishing tackle retailer said that Maltby has a “strong track record” in advising international consumer brands on their “purpose, brand strategy and proposition”. She will now be working…
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Jan- 2020 -31 January
French Connection ceases search for buyer amid ‘strategic review’
French Connection has announced it is no longer searching for a buyer for the fashion brand, amid a strategic review. According to Drapers, French Connection will “refocus” on its turnaround which includes the “right sizing” of its store portfolio. The news follows just four months after the fashion retailer said…
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31 January
Amazon sales skyrocket over Christmas period
Amazon has announced a 21% increase in sales to $87.4bn (£66.5bn) for the three month period ended 31 December 2019. The e-commerce giant also reported that operating income increased to $3bn (£2.9bn) in Q4, compared with $3.8bn (£2.8bn) in the fourth quarter of 2018. Net income also increased to $3.3bn…
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31 January
Consumer confidence rises in January
Consumer confidence in the UK increased over January, according to the latest research from Growth from Knowledge (GfK). The research group’s Consumer Confidence Index has increased two points to –9 during the month, as four measures increased and one measure decreased. The Personal Financial Situation index, which measures changes in…
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31 January
Laura Ashley CEO steps down
Laura Ashley has announced that Kwan Cheong Ng will retire as the executive director and chief executive officer of the company on 30 April 2020. Ng, who joined as CEO in January 2012, will remain on the board as a non-executive director after his retirement. Katharine Poulter, who is currently…
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30 January
Sports Direct battles order to hand ‘private’ documents to FRC
Sportswear retailer Sports Direct is fighting an order to hand over “private” documents to the UK’s accounting watchdog. According to a report by the Financial Times (FT), the retailer is attempting to overturn a High Court ruling from 2018 which ordered it to submit 40 company documents to the Financial…
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30 January
Amazon, Aldi and M&S Simply Food named UK’s ‘most loved’ retailers
Amazon, Aldi and M&S Simply Food have topped the charts as the UK’s “most loved” retailers, according to a new study of 96,000 consumers from market research firm Savanta. The study, which rated the top 100 retailers by how loved they are by consumers, also identified a direct correlation between…
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30 January
Deloitte fined £1m over handling of Comet administration
‘Big Four’ accountancy firm Deloitte has been fined £925,000 for its handling of electrical goods retailer Comet’s administration in 2012. Deloitte and two of its partners, Neville Kahn and Christopher Farrington, have been sanctioned by the accountancy watchdog and have also agreed to pay the costs of the Institute of…
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