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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Jan- 2025 -7 January
Former Coles chief executive to join Kingfisher board
Kingfisher has announced the appointment of former Coles CEO in Australia, Ian McLeod, to its board of directors as a non-executive director, effective from 20 January. A retail executive with over 40 years of experience across various different international markets, he most recently served as group chief executive at DFI…
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7 January
BRC warns of 2025 falling sales volume despite December sales growth
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has warned of possible falling sales volume in 2025 despite the modest increase in total retail sales experienced in December 2024. UK total retail sales in December 2024 increased by 3.2% year on year, against a growth of 1.9% in December 2023, according to new…
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7 January
Average household supermarket spend hit £460 this Christmas, Kantar finds
Household spending on take-home groceries hit a record high this Christmas at £460 on average, according to the latest data from Kantar. Overall take-home sales at the grocers rose by 2.1% over the four weeks to 29 December compared with last year. It comes as Katar found that people were…
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7 January
B&Q acquires five Homebase UK stores for £2.5m
B&Q has announced that it has reached an agreement to acquire five leasehold stores in the UK, currently trading as Homebase, for a total purchase price of £2.5 m. This follows the agreement to buy three stores currently trading as Homebase in the Republic of Ireland announced on 24 December…
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7 January
Next raises profit guidance as festive sales beat expectations
Next has revealed that it has raised its full-year pre-tax profit guidance by £5m up to £1.01bn after a better than expected quarter. In this quarter, full price sales rose 6% in the nine weeks to 28 December, beating the previous guidance for the fourth quarter of 3.5%. It stated…
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7 January
Quiz lender hires advisors ahead of delisting vote
Quiz’s principal lender has reportedly drafted in advisors to help the company explore restructuring options amid a “growing crisis” at the retailer.According to Sky News, HSBC hired restructuring experts from Interpath Advisory ahead of a vote on delisting from the London stock market. Quiz reportedly plans to hold a shareholder…
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6 January
Today’s news in brief-6/1/25
Fast-fashion retailer Shein is set to face scrutiny from a Parliamentary Committee over labour practices in its supply chain. The inquiry, part of the government’s employment rights initiative, also involves Chinese firm Temu. The committee, chaired by ex-Labour minister Liam Byrne, aims to tackle forced labour concerns and inadequate protection…
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6 January
The O2 welcomes over 10 million visitors in ‘best-ever’ trading year
Live entertainment, leisure, and retail destination the O2 has recorded its best-ever year for sales and footfall, welcoming over 10 million visitors – an uplift of 12% compared to 2023. Sales across retail, leisure and F&B saw an overall increase of 6%, marking The O2’s best-ever year for trade. Outlet…
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6 January
Evri reports best-ever Christmas and peak trading
Evri delivered record parcel volumes over its peak festive period, including its best-ever week following Black Friday, it has revealed. The biggest week in its 50-year history saw Evri deliver 24.7m parcels (to 7 December 2024) as post-Black Friday deliveries rose by 20.8% on the same period in 2023. This…
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6 January
Waterstones plans dozens of new bookshops in 2025
Waterstones chief executive James Daunt plans to open dozens of new bookshops this year, according to the FT. Daunt, who is also the boss of Barnes and Noble in the US, oversaw the opening of 57 stores in the US and 12 in the UK during the year and now…
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