Supply Chain
This coverage examines supply chain strategy and performance within the UK retail industry. Reporting highlights logistics innovation, inventory management, sourcing practices, supplier relations, technology adoption, and responses to disruption. Focused on efficiency, resilience, and commercial impact, it provides insights for retail executives and managers optimising operations and ensuring continuity.
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Apr- 2020 -21 AprilClothing & Shoes
Joules adds £15m to existing debt facility
British lifestyle brand Joules has announced it has successfully agreed to add £15m to an existing credit facility with Barclays Bank, due to the coronavirus crisis. The retailer also said it has taken a “significant” number of mitigating actions to conserve cash throughout this period of significant “global macroeconomic uncertainty”.…
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15 AprilComment
Will Boohoo’s bubble soon burst?
It’s fair to say that Boohoo was the success story of 2019. It achieved staggering growth and is now worth more than Marks and Spencer – an incredible achievement for a relatively nascent brand. But, as it continues its market domination, you do have to wonder when the good news…
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8 AprilCoronavirus
Tesco: Sales rise 30%, but virus could cost nearly £1bn
Tesco has revealed that its sales rose 30% in the first few weeks of the coronavirus crisis, in light of increased stockpiling and panic buying across the country. The surge in sales has now stabilised, however, and the group has reported that normal sales volumes are now being experienced. In…
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Mar- 2020 -30 MarchAdvice
Covid 19: The future health of the high street
The health of the high street is up for debate now more than ever. If retailers were struggling before coronavirus set its sights on our shores, following last week’s forced government closure of non-essential brick & mortar stores throughout the UK, it’s likely that many will have pulled down their…
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25 MarchSupermarkets
UK shoppers spent an additional £467m on groceries in March
Grocery sales at UK supermarkets during the week ending 14 March increased by over 22% compared with the same period in 2019, according to new data from Nielsen. This is equal to an additional £467m more in purchases than this time last year, and the “significant” rise in grocery sales…
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23 MarchComment
Coronavirus: Lessons learnt from a multinational company operating in China
As the coronavirus crisis deepens, here are some insights from the CEO of supply chain planning software vendor, FuturMaster, on the impact of the virus outbreak and how companies can anticipate and react to such crisis situations based on the lessons learnt from various customers – including one of the…
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20 MarchAdvice
How to perfect a business continuity plan for remote working
Across the globe, millions of employees are being advised to begin distant or home working, but managing and coordinating a remote workforce is unfamiliar territory for many business owners. As companies look to ensure the correct equipment is available for the workforce, it’s crucial that key stakeholders don’t overlook the…
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20 MarchSupermarkets
Government tells supermarkets to ‘join forces’
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) has told supermarkets to “join forces” as the coronavirus crisis unfolds. It announced it is “temporarily relaxing” elements of competition law as part of a new package of measures to allow supermarkets to “work together to feed the nation”. The move…
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19 MarchAnalysis
Huge increase in online sales across Italy offers hope for struggling retailers in the UK and Ireland
Global financial markets continue to suffer from the impact of coronavirus, with economists predicting the slowest rate of global growth since 2009. However, the current lockdown taking place in Italy has actually instigated a significant boom in e-commerce sales. With people quarantined at home, and schools, universities, theatres, cinemas, museums,…
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19 MarchHigh Street
Next warns on coronavirus despite full-year sales growth
Fashion retailer Next has warned that sales could plummet in the coming weeks and months as the UK battles the coronavirus pandemic, despite posting strong results for the year ended January 2020. Next full price sales were up 4% during the period, and brand total sales (including markdown sales) were…
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