Christmas

Asda plans to overtake Primark as UK’s biggest clothing retailer

Asda is reportedly planning to overtake Primark as the UK’s biggest clothing retailer, The Telegraph has reported.  According to the paper, chairman Allan Leighton believes that the supermarket’s clothing brand, George, can help lead a turnaround for the company. As part of these plans, 100 Asda stores are set to…

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Fortnum and Mason eyes first UK stores outside of London

Fortnum and Mason is reportedly considering opening its first ever UK stores outside of London following a surge in demand for its luxury teas, biscuits and jam. The company’s CEO Tom Athron told The Telegraph that he would be interested in having branches “up the spine of the country”. He…

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Monsoon owner sees FY losses widen to £7.5m

Monsoon and Accessorize owner, Adena Brands Limited, has reported a £7.5m loss before tax and an EBITDA loss of £2.4m for the year to 31 August 2024, due to “significant” cost inflation which was driven by the UK National Minimum Wage rise.  The loss also comes as group sales for…

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The Works ups profit guidance as turnaround bears fruit

The Works has upgraded its FY25 profit guidance and is expecting to deliver approximately adjusted EBITDA of £9.5m compared with £6m in FY24, following good progress with its turnaround strategy. The group is also targeting profit growth in excess of current market expectations of the £10m adjusted EBITDA in FY26.…

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Supermarket sales rise 9.6% amid Easter boost

Total Till sales increased 9.6% at UK supermarkets during the last four weeks ending 19 April 2025, up by 2.7% against sales recorded in March, as the late Easter boosted sales for April, according to new data released by NielsenIQ (NIQ). This rise was helped by shoppers opting to “indulge…

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Primark UK sales fall 4% in H1 as US and Europe boost growth

Primark’s sales grew by 1% to £4.47bn in the first half of the year, with adjusted operating profit up 8% to £540m, as weaker UK and Ireland sales were offset by growth across the US and Europe. In both the UK and Ireland, sales fell by 4% despite good like-for-like…

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Lush to pass on Trump tariffs to US consumer as its losses widen

Cosmetics retailer Lush has revealed it is set to pass on the effects of Donald Trump’s tariffs to its US consumers as it looks to navigate a difficult trading environment, which has seen its group losses before tax increase 52% to £42.6m. According to its latest accounts on Companies House,…

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Nearly half of all retail staff worked while unwell last year

Nearly half (46%) of retail staff worked while unwell at the end of last year, which is 5% higher than the end of 2023, as fears around job cuts following the autumn Budget’s tax rises took hold. According to the new Retail People Index, published by the Retail Trust and…

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Virgin Wines targets £100m revenues through ‘turbocharging’ growth plan

Virgin Wines has unveiled plans to “turbocharge” its growth and deliver £100m in annual revenue over the next five years through a new growth strategy, whilst the group hailed a “resilient” performance in its H1 results. The plan, which aims to deliver this revenue growth at a 7% EBITDA margin,…

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Quarter of a million retail jobs lost in five years, ONS finds

There are now 249,000 fewer retail jobs than there were five years ago, according to the latest data from the ONS.  While there were 2.88 million jobs in retail in December 2024, that was only because it is traditionally the high point of the year for the sector due to…

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