Christmas
This coverage explores the critical Christmas trading period in the UK retail sector, focusing on sales performance, promotional strategies, consumer trends, supply chain planning, and operational challenges. Reporting highlights how retailers prepare for and execute peak season campaigns to maximise revenue and manage demand. Designed for executives and managers, it provides insights into effective planning and competitive positioning during the festive season.
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Jan- 2022 -4 JanuaryHigh Street
Retailers see New Year’s Eve footfall boost
Retailers saw a pleasant end to the year with footfall rising 5.2% on New Year’s Eve, according to the latest figures from Springboard. This is a sharp contrast with New Year’s Eve 2019 when high street footfall declined by -9% from the week before. It comes despite a footfall drop…
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Dec- 2021 -23 DecemberSupermarkets
Iceland MD urges people to get vaccinated as staff absences surge
Iceland managing director Richard Walker has urged colleagues to get vaccinated as the number of staff absences reached a new high at the supermarket. The retailer, which employs roughly around 30,000 people, said that due to the Omicron variant, staff absences have quadrupled. During the peak Christmas period, Walker noted…
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23 DecemberHigh Street
December retail sales slow amid Omicron impact, CBI warns
Retail sales growth slowed in the year-to-December to 8%, down from 39% last month, as the impact of the Omicron variant affected trading. According to the latest CBI monthly Distributive Trades Survey, despite the new restriction, retail sales were seen broadly in line with seasonal norms in December, having been…
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21 DecemberSupermarkets
Unite suspends two-day HGV strike action
Unite union has suspended a two-day strike which could have affected deliveries to 1,500 convenience stores across London and the South East. The two-day strike, which was due on 23 December 2021, would have included Christmas Eve by drivers employed by the Tesco-owned Booker Retail Partners at its Thamesmead site.…
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21 DecemberHigh Street
UK high streets suffer as Covid concerns grow
UK high streets saw footfall decline by -2.6% over pre-Christmas weekend, according to the latest figures from Springboard. Although footfall across UK retail destinations rose by 5.5% last week from the week before, it ended with a disappointing performance, felt especially by large city centres, with footfall over the weekend…
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20 DecemberHigh Street
Mike Ashley to consider taking Frasers private
Mike Ashely is reportedly considering taking Frasers Group off of the stock market in a bid to take advantage of its recent period of strong growth. According to The Telegraph, its recent performance combined with an intensive share buyback scheme has prompted speculation of delisting. It is thought that the…
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20 DecemberSupermarkets
Sainsbury’s opens new Glasgow store
Sainsbury’s welcomed customers to its latest new store of 2021 as it opened the doors to Sainsbury’s Ingram Street Local in Glasgow. Colin McInnes from local charity Homeless Project Scotland joined colleagues to cut the ribbon and support the arrival of the new convenience store. Situated in the heart of…
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17 DecemberCoronavirus
Consumer confidence falls in December amid Omicron fears
Pre-Christmas consumer confidence has fallen one point to -15 in the UK, according to GfK’s Consumer Confidence Index, as the impact of the latest Omicron variant takes hold on shoppers. The headline figure, which is actually two points lower compared with the same period last year, comes as two measures…
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17 DecemberEconomy
November retail sales rise by 1.4%, ONS reveals
Retail sales volumes rose by 1.4% in November 2021, and were 7.2% higher than pre-Covid levels in February 2020, according to the latest Office of National Statistics (ONS) data. Non-food stores sales volumes rose by 2% during the period due to growth in clothing stores (2.9%) and other non-food stores…
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17 DecemberOnline & Digital
Online retailers expected to send 95% more orders this week
Online stores are preparing themselves for the next 10 days of shipping, with retailers expected to send up to 95% more parcels compared to the average shopping week, according to data produced by Sendcloud. It revealed that consumers are most likely to shop for Christmas gifts online 10 days before…
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