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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Jan- 2021 -20 JanuaryElectrical
Dixons Carphone sees 121% online growth over Christmas
Dixons Carphone welcomed a 121% rise in its like-for-like online revenue during the peak Christmas season, attributed to a higher demand in e-commerce amid the pandemic. The company’s trading update for the 10 weeks ended 9 January 2021 revealed that Electricals like-for-like revenue increased by 11% for the period. The…
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20 JanuaryClothing & Shoes
Burberry hails strategic progress despite sales decline
Burberry has welcomed a period of “strong” strategic progress in its third quarter, despite sales sliding by 9% in the 13 weeks ended 26 December. The fashion house said that lower sales were attributed to planned reductions in markdown and reduced tourist traffic in outlets. In addition, Covid-19 related store…
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20 JanuaryHigh Street
Arcadia to close 31 stores, 700 jobs lost
Arcadia, Sir Phillip Green’s retail empire, is set to close another 31 stores after going into administration in November, which will reportedly result in the loss of 700 jobs. The latest round of closures, which was first reported by The Times, will include the closure of all 21 of the…
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19 JanuaryGovernment
Sunak looks to raise corporation tax in March budget
Chancellor Rishi Sunak is reportedly looking to raise corporation tax in the upcoming March budget to pay off the estimated £400bn borrowed by the UK throughout the pandemic. According to The Financial Times, the alleged move has sparked uproar among business owners who claim they are still struggling with the…
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19 JanuaryHigh Street
Hotel Chocolat’s multi-channel model sees sales boost
Hotel Chocolat has reported a 19% rise in total group revenue in the 13 weeks to 27 December thanks to its multi-channel model, according to the company’s latest trading update. The chocolatier said strong online growth in the UK assisted the business as the pandemic led to temporary store closures…
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19 JanuaryElectrical
AO welcomes ‘record’ Christmas quarter
AO World has welcomed its “strongest ever” peak trading period over the Black Friday and Christmas period, with year-on-year UK revenue soaring 67.2% to £457.3m in the quarter ended 31 December 2020. It comes as the group said it has continued investment in its infrastructure in order to deliver higher…
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18 JanuaryAdvice
How packaging can build retail resilience
The ‘stay at home’ impact of the pandemic is turbocharging the importance of packaging. It is a critical component helping retailers to sell more products online and effectively move goods through busier and changing supply chains that are constantly flexing in response to the impact of Covid-19. At the same…
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18 JanuaryOnline & Digital
Barclay family mulls £3bn Very Group float
The Barclay family is reportedly eyeing up a £3bn float of online retailer Very Group, according to reports from Sky News. The billionaire family, who owns the business, is said to be in the early stages of exploring plans for the flotation in a bid to “capitalise on exploding investor…
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15 JanuaryOnline & Digital
N Brown sales continue to recover in Q3
N Brown has seen group revenue continue to improve in FY21. Though revenue was down by 8.8% in its third quarter, this marked an improvement from the 13.4% fall in Q2 and 21.9% decline in Q1, when the pandemic first hit. According to the retailer, customer trends in its latest…
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15 JanuaryEconomy
UK GDP shrinks by 2.6%
GDP declined by 2.6% in November 2020 as government restrictions reduced economic activity, the latest ONS figures reveal. Figures released by the statistics office show that November GDP was 8.5% below its pre-pandemic levels. The decline follows a period of economic growth for the UK, with last October’s report revealing…
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