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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Nov- 2020 -9 NovemberAdvice
How retailers can change the way they make decisions
How often have we heard of the demise of a retailer being linked to poor decision-making? For a long time (at least pre-pandemic), an inability to combat the rise of ecommerce was often positioned as the reason for many retailers’ struggles. Just look at Blockbuster – we’ve all heard how…
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9 NovemberCoronavirus
Pfizer reveals Covid-19 vaccine candidate is 90% effective
A successful Covid-19 vaccine is a step closer after Pfizer/Biontech revealed its vaccine candidate is 90% effective, according to its first interim analysis. The findings, which are well above the 50% effectiveness for a vaccine to be approved, comes following a clinical trial which involved over 43,000 people. Some 42%…
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9 NovemberDepartment Stores
Harrods forced to reorganise £200m credit
Harrods has been forced to reorganise its £200m credit line due to the second national lockdown causing the closure of its flagship Knightsbridge store. According to The Sunday Times, the department store negotiated a revolving credit facility with the Qatar National Bank in August, to avoid breaching covenants it made…
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5 NovemberCoronavirus
Bank of England unveils £150bn covid support package
The Bank of England (BoE) has unveiled it will give the UK economy a further £150bn in crisis support and keep interest rates at a record low, due to the rapid rise in Covid-19 restrictions across the country. At the Banks latest Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), members stated that the…
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4 NovemberHigh Street
Covid-19 could shutter 18,000 stores permanently, report shows
18,000 more retail stores face permanent closure in 2020 as Covid-19 restrictions continue to damage the UK highstreet. According to the Guardian, a report published by the Local Data Company (LDC) has revealed that it predicts nearly 15,000 more outlets will be left empty in 2020, compared with 9,169 net…
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4 NovemberClothing & Shoes
Frasers Group increases stake in Mulberry to 29.7%
Frasers Group has more than doubled its stake in Mulberry, the luxury fashion company, from 12.5% to 29.7%. Mike Ashley’s retail group had bought its first set of shares in the firm in February of this year for almost £19m. At the time, Frasers said the move was part of…
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3 NovemberClothing & Shoes
ABF profit slumps as Primark hit by £2bn loss
Associated British Foods, the parent company of Primark, has announced that statutory operating profit tumbled 40% to £810m in the full-year ended 12 September 2020. In the same period, group revenue fell by 12% to £13.9bn following the impact of the ongoing pandemic. The full year decline in group revenue…
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3 NovemberClothing & Shoes
Laura Ashley returns to high street with Next partnership
Laura Ashley is set to return to the UK high street next year with a new partnership with Next, which will sell its homeware products and will launch a series of new stores. According to The Guardian, the clothing and home furnishing retailer said it will reintroduce its homeware via…
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2 NovemberHigh Street
Christmas footfall predicted to drop by 62%
Christmas footfall over the six weeks from Sunday 22 November to Saturday 26 December across all UK retail destinations will be down by 62%, according to the latest estimates from Springboard. The data analysts said the new national lockdown restrictions will see retailers miss out on the start of “essential”…
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Oct- 2020 -30 OctoberLuxury Goods
LVMH agrees to reduced Tiffany deal
LVMH has agreed to go through with its acquisition of Tiffany & Co following a lengthy legal battle, albeit for a reduced fee. In an update announced yesterday (29 October) LVHM said it had concluded an agreement with Tiffany “modifying” certain terms of their initial agreement to reflect a new…
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