National Living Wage
This coverage explores the implications of the National Living Wage for UK retailers, including its impact on staffing costs, operational decisions, and workforce management. Reporting highlights wage policy changes, employer responses, legal obligations, and strategies to balance compliance with commercial performance — providing insight for retail executives, HR managers, and business owners navigating wage legislation.
-
Feb- 2025 -10 FebruarySupermarkets
Lidl increases pay for 28,000 hourly-paid staff
Lidl has announced a pay increase for 28,000 hourly-paid employees, with new rates coming into effect in March 2025. The discount grocer confirmed entry-level pay will rise to £12.75 nationally, up from £12.40 and increasing to £13.65 with length of service. Meanwhile, in London, new starters will see pay rates…
Read More » -
Jan- 2025 -28 JanuaryEconomy
January sales see shop price deflation hit 0 .7%
January sales helped shop price deflation reach 0.7% in January, above deflation of 1.0% in the previous month, as retailers attempted to attract post-Christmas shoppers, according to the latest figures from the BRC-NilesenIQ Shop Price Index. Shop price annual growth is at its lowest rate since August 2021 as non-food…
Read More » -
17 JanuaryNews-In-Brief
Today’s news in brief-17/1/25
Retail sales in the UK fell by 0.3% in December, disappointing analysts who anticipated a 0.4% rise during the Christmas season. The decline, attributed to the poorest supermarket sales since 2013, was partly offset by a 4.4% rise in clothing sales. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported that food…
Read More » -
17 JanuaryEconomy
Retail sales unexpectedly fall amid ‘poor’ supermarket sales
Retail sales fell 0.3% in December according to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics. It follows a 0.1% increase in November, revised down from a previous estimate of a 0.2% rise. Analysts had been expecting sales to rise by 0.4% in the run up to Christmas as…
Read More » -
17 JanuaryDIY
DFS sales and profits rise in H1 amid market share gains
DFS has reported strong trading in its half-year results, largely driven by market share gains, lower operating costs and gross margin improvement, adding it was “cautiously optimistic” for the year ahead, despite inflationary pressures and a tough market outlook. In the half-year ended 29 December 2024, its profits are expected to…
Read More » -
15 JanuaryEconomy
NI increase will force retailers to raise prices, BRC warns
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has warned that the National Insurance Increase, set to come into place this April, will force retailers to put up prices after it found that two thirds of CFOs said they will do so in response to the change. The BRC said its survey of…
Read More » -
9 JanuaryEconomy
BRC warns of 2025 headwinds despite lower Xmas inflation
Consumers benefited from lower inflation for the week to 7 December 2024, according to the latest BRC-Nielsen IQ Shop Price Index, yet the British Retail Consortium anticipates fresh headwinds for the new year. The later timing of Black Friday in 2024 meant that the first week of December included the…
Read More » -
7 JanuaryNews
Bestway Retail removes fuel levy charge for Costcutter stores
Bestway Retail has announced the removal of the fuel levy charge, previously at £3.66 per delivery, for all mainland Costcutter stores for deliveries made on or after 1 January 2025. In addition to lifting the fuel levy charge, Bestway has also led the market in announcing an investment of more…
Read More » -
7 JanuaryHigh Street
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…
Read More » -
Dec- 2024 -17 DecemberPeople Moves
Retail loses 225,000 jobs in five years
The retail industry has lost 225,000 jobs in the last five years, according to data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). On a four-quarter average there were 40,000 less jobs in the industry compared with last year. Overall there were 2.81m jobs in retail in September 2024, although this…
Read More »
