Coronavirus

Employment continues to rise

The UK shows ‘continuing’ recovery in the labour market, with employment continuing to rise, according to the ONS latest Labour Force Survey estimates for September to November 2021. It revealed in December 2021 there were 29.5 million employees in the UK, up 184,000 on the revised November 2021 level and…

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Customer service needs for the post-covid consumer

Nurturing customer service continues to be a primary focus of businesses. Even pre-covid, retailers naturally updated their offerings to out-perform competing brands – why the groundwork concerning competition within retailers is said to have entered into discussion as early as the 20th Century; ‘assessing the complexity of competition’, ‘distinguishing its…

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UK economy surpassed pre-Covid levels in November

Gross domestic product (GDP) has surpassed its pre-pandemic level for the first time as it grew by 0.9% in November 2021, according to the latest Office for National Statistics (ONS) data. In the latest release, output in consumer-facing services grew by 0.8%, mainly because of a 1.4% increase in retail…

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Diversification – the pandemic lifeline

Business diversification is not a novel notion. Renowned e-commerce website Amazon is said to be one of the early companies that diversified its offerings, transitioning from a marketplace of reading material to the commercial giant it is now. The eruption of coronavirus demanded more innovation from businesses. Many firms across…

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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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Mandatory face coverings return in shops amid new variant fears

The government announced over the weekend the return of mandatory face coverings in all shops and on public transport after two cases of the new Omicron variant were found in England. From 4am on Tuesday 30 November, face coverings will be compulsory in shops and other settings such as banks,…

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Retail sales return to growth in October

October Retail sales volumes rose by 0.8%, according to the latest data by the Office of National Statistics (ONS). Non-food stores also saw a rise in sales volumes by 4.2% during the period, with second-hand stores, toy stores and sports equipment stores growing by 6.2%. Meanwhile, clothing stores sales volumes…

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UK recovery slows to 1.3% in Q3

UK economic growth slowed to 1.3% in Q3, down from 5.5% in the second quarter of the year. According to the latest figures from the Office of National Statistics (ONS), the level of quarterly GDP is now 2.1% below where it was before the coronavirus pandemic at Quarter 4 (Oct…

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Holland & Barrett to close stores on Boxing Day

Holland and Barrett is the latest store to announce plans to close all its stores in the UK and Ireland on Saturday, 25 December and Sunday, 26 December 2021, as a “thank you to colleagues for their efforts during the pandemic”. It follows in the footsteps of Morrisons, Marks and…

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Hotel Chocolat profits hit £10.1m in FY21

Hotel Chocolat has welcomed “better than expected” results for the year ending 27 June 2021, with pre-tax profits reaching £10.1m, up from £2.4m the previous year. Revenue increased 21% to £164.6m up from £136.3m in 2020, with 70% of revenue in the year generated through UK digital, partners and continuity,…

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