Pandemic
This coverage examines the impact of pandemics on the UK retail industry, focusing on operational disruption, financial challenges, consumer behaviour shifts, and recovery strategies. Reporting highlights store closures, safety measures, supply chain pressures, leadership decisions, and lessons learned to enhance resilience. Tailored for executives and managers, it provides insights to navigate crisis situations and strengthen preparedness.
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Apr- 2021 -28 AprilElectrical
Dixons Carphone to scrap airport shopping business
Dixons Carphone is set to close its airport shopping business, just months after the UK government announced plans to remove airside tax-free shopping. In a trading update, the electrical retailer said that it did not expect passenger numbers to “recover sufficiently” to compensate for the removal of the tax. This…
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28 AprilAdvice
Unlocking the future of in-store shopping – with our phones
Amazon Fresh still seems surreal (at least for some shoppers, for whom it feels a bit too closely like theft!). It’s a relatively new concept in the UK, with just three Amazon stores live at time of writing. But everything else surrounding the Fresh concept is already second nature, and…
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27 AprilSupermarkets
Grocery sales rise 5.7%
Take-home grocery sales rose 5.7% for the 12 weeks to 18 April 2021, according to data analytics and brand consulting company Kantar. The group’s figures also show a 6.5% growth for the four-weeks prior to 18 April, reflecting increasing consumer confidence in physical retail. Kantar found that the over-65 community…
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26 AprilAdvice
Tackling the new user, missed opportunity phenomenon
In a turbulent year, retailers have faced both famine (with retail stores closing) and feast (with the spike in online shopping) as they adapted to the restrictions and opportunities created by Covid-19. Our research shows that in the past 12 months the number of first-time online shoppers has doubled. However,…
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23 AprilAdvice
Getting ready for the post-covid retail boom
From being in the grip of the second wave in a bleak mid-Winter two months ago with so much uncertainty and anxiety there really has been a remarkable turnaround due to the determination of all to fix this situation. A majority of the population have been vaccinated and sunnier days…
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23 AprilEconomy
Consumer confidence edges up alongside reopening
GfK’s consumer confidence UK Consumer Confidence Index increased one point to -15 in April as the retail sector reopened. Two measures were up in comparison to the March 19 announcement, one was flat and two measures were one point down. GfK found that the index measuring changes in personal finances…
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23 AprilCoronavirus
Retail sales continue recovery in March
Retail sales volumes continued to witness recovery in March, with an increase of 5.4% against the previous month, according to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics. The latest figures reflect the effect of the easing of coronavirus restrictions on consumer spending, with sales 1.6% higher than February…
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22 AprilLuxury Goods
Kering’s Q1 revenues return to pre-pandemic levels
Luxury fashion group Kering has revealed that its revenues for the first quarter of the year have returned to pre-pandemic levels as consolidated revenues spiked 25.8% year-on-year. Kering claimed that the growth was driven by an uptick in sales of 83% in Asia-Pacific and 46% in North America. Moreover, online…
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22 AprilEconomy
Carphone Warehouse closes all sites in Ireland
Carphone Warehouse has announced the closure of all its sites in Ireland with immediate effect. This includes its 69 standalone Carphone Warehouses and 12 in-store branches, employing 450 people, and the brand has stopped taking orders via its Irish website. However, this move is not set to affect Currys PC…
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21 AprilNews
Argos to close Somerset depot, 230 jobs at risk
Around 230 jobs are reportedly at risk following the planned closure of an Argos distribution site in Bridgewater, Somerset. A Sainsbury’s spokesperson told Retail Sector: “Last year we shared plans to accelerate the integration of the Sainsbury’s and Argos logistics networks and confirmed a number of our existing depots would…
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