What happened to River Island? Retail River Island is suffering from a common affliction. Declining sales and an inability to keep up with competition have led to a restructuring plan, with imminent store closures if the strategy goes ahead. High-street peers like Miss Selfridge, Dorothy Perkins and Debenhams have already disappeared and become online-only – River Island is just the “latest [...]
Asos replaces finance chief after just one year Retail Asos’ chief finance officer Dave Murray has stepped down from his role after 15 months as the struggling commerce giant continued to push a turnaround. He will be replace by Aaron Izzard, who currently serves as director of group finance at Asos. Murray, who will leave to “pursue other opportunities”, has helmed Asos’ finance division [...]
Debenhams: Shares in Boohoo owner rise amid £175m refinancing talks Retail Shares in Debenhams Group, which also includes brands such as Boohoo, have risen amid talks over a £175m refinancing its huge debt pile as it looks to turn around the struggling business. The owner of Pretty Little Thing, which rebranded to Debenhams earlier this year in a shift to a marketplace model, has been struggling [...]
Gymshark: How going public could help take on ‘monster rivals’ Nike and Adidas May 7, 2025 Gymshark, the activewear brand co-founded by billionaire Ben Francis, could be pushed towards becoming a public company in its bid to “achieve the kind of global domination enjoyed by monster rivals Nike and Adidas”. According to Danni Hewson, head of financial analysis at AJ Bell, the Solihull-headquartered business would need to “amp up its presence” [...]
Asos: Losses narrow as e-commerce giant drives turnaround April 24, 2025 Struggling ecommerce giant Asos has reported reduced losses as its turnaround plan begins to take shape. Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) moved into positive territory at £42.5m in the 26 weeks to March 2, from a loss of £16.3m last year. Its share price dipped by nearly two per cent in [...]
City broker upgrades Boohoo shares to ‘Hold’ April 23, 2025 City broker Shore Capital has upgraded fast-fashion retailer Boohoo, now trading as Debenhams, from a ‘Sell’ to a ‘Hold’ in light of its falling share price. Boohoo’s share price has dropped by more than a third since last November, after a series of poor trading updates and a public spat with Mike Ashley. Shore Capital [...]
Will Trump tariffs end up helping Next, M&S and Dunelm? April 8, 2025 UK heavyweights who aren’t exposed to the US market, like Next and M&S, may end up seeing some silver linings from Trump’s tariffs, according to analysts. Only a few UK retailers – namely JD Sports, Doc Martens and Burberry – sell to the states and produce in eastern Asia. Berenberg analysts said that positives from [...]
Asos and Boohoo stick to US closures despite Trump tariffs April 8, 2025 Asos is to continue with its plan to close its distribution centre in Georgia, USA, and serve the country from Yorkshire despite the imposition of President Donald Trump’s tariffs. At the start of the year, the fast-fashion group announced plans to close its US base in another effort to boost profitability and streamline operations. The [...]
Motor finance: Insurance industry nervously watches legal battle March 31, 2025 As the lenders brace for the start of a high-profile legal battle on Tuesday, the insurance industry lurks in the sidelines
Asos shares spike on positive trading update March 21, 2025 Asos shares rose by over a fifth this morning after the company posted a better than expected market update. The e-commerce retailer told markets that it expects a “significant improvement in profitability” this year, adding that its own brand full-price sales have returned to growth. Investors reacted positively to the news. Asos’ share price had [...]