Currys

Today’s news in brief-2/4/25

Topps Tiles reported a 4% rise in half-year sales to £127.7m, with underlying growth accelerating to 4.4% in Q2. Trade sales surged 12%, supported by an 11% increase in active traders. However, the retailer warned that National Living Wage and National Insurance hikes will add £4m to annual costs from…

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Currys unveils largest ever investment into safety and security

Currys has announced its largest ever annual investment in store safety measures to help keep its employees safe and deter shoplifters, amid “record high” shoplifting in retail.  As part of the investment, Currys is implementing a wide range of new technologies and safety programmes, including upgraded specification Public Display Monitors in…

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Are salary increases the only way to keep retail staff happy?

In the past few weeks a number of retailers including B&Q and Currys have announced that they will be increasing staff pay. In the case of B&Q it is raising its UK minimum hourly rate to £12.71 per hour, above the National Minimum Wage which is increasing to £12.21 per…

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Today’s news in brief-6/3/25

Pepco Group is considering the sale of Poundland as part of a strategic shift to focus on its Pepco brand, which drives the majority of its earnings. Despite a 1.5% increase in group like-for-like sales in early 2025, Poundland has struggled with declining performance, exacerbated by a challenging UK retail…

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Currys introduces ‘inflation-beating’ pay boost

Currys has announced an “inflation-beating” boost of 6% to colleague pay thanks to an £8m investment that will see a raise in the hourly rate paid to employees, combined with the retailer’s bonus programme.  This boost means that skilled hourly paid store workers will have their minimum hourly rate rise…

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Former Poundland boss steps into leadership role at Howdens

Former Poundland managing director Austin Cooke has been appointed as managing director for trade at Howdens. The news comes after Cooke made the decision to step down from his role at Poundland after seven-and-a-half years. He began his career at Poundland as a retail director before progressing to transformation director,…

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Today’s news in brief-15/1/25

Inflation in the UK unexpectedly fell to 2.5% in December, marking its first decline in three months, according to the ONS. The decrease, attributed to reduced hotel and tobacco prices despite rising fuel costs, exceeded expectations, as analysts had predicted inflation would remain steady at 2.6%. While inflation remains above…

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Currys raises profit outlook amid ‘strong peak trading’

Currys has revealed that it expects its profit-before-tax to land between £145-155m for the full year, 23-31% ahead of consensus expectations. It comes after the company saw its revenues rise 2% like-for-like in the UK and Ireland in the 10 weeks ended 4 January, what the company refers to as…

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Today’s news in brief-12/12/24

Central Group’s executive chair Tos Chirathivat admitted to overpaying in hindsight for Selfridges and other European luxury department stores as part of a £4bn deal in 2021. Chirathivat told the FT the price felt steep given rising global interest rates but noted the valuation may look more reasonable in a…

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Currys HY losses narrow as it warns of price rises

Currys has posted a loss before tax of £10m for the half year ended 26 October 2024, up from £44m in the same period last year. Alongside this, the company posted a revenue of £3.9bn, up 1% year-on-year and driven by a like-for-like revenue increase of 2%. As part of…

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