Tiered coronavirus restrictions hit UK high street shopper numbers October 19, 2020 The UK’s new tiered coronavirus restrictions contributed to a drop in footfall at retail sites across the country last week, in a worrying sign for the shaky economy. Visits to high street shops and malls fell 3.1 per cent in the week ending 17 October, according to data company Springboard. It was the fourth consecutive [...]
Love in a time of Covid: A guide to lockdown dating October 19, 2020 Shakespeare’s assertion that “the course of true love never did run smooth” has never felt quite so true as it has during the pandemic for couples who don’t live together. This has become especially complicated with the introduction of different restriction levels across regional boundaries. From the beginning of lockdown, clarity on how to live [...]
Retail giants urge Sunak to U-turn on abolishing VAT refund for tourists October 19, 2020 A group of 16 UK retail giants has urged Rishi Sunak to U-turn on his plan to abolish the VAT refund for international visitors from next year. The group – which includes the heads of Paul Smith, Ted Baker, The White Company, Fortnum and Mason and Charles Tyrwhitt – said abolishing the VAT refund would [...]
Retail mogul Mike Ashley makes fresh bid for Debenhams October 18, 2020 Sport Direct tycoon Mike Ashley has reportedly made a fresh bid for Debenhams, reviving his long-standing pursuit of the department store chain. The retail billionaire this month submitted an improved offer as the auction for Debenhams nears its final stages, the Sunday Times reported. Debenhams, which collapsed into administration in April, has hired Lazard to [...]
H&M, Amazon and Boohoo among retailers to be quizzed by MPs over Uyghur slave labour links October 16, 2020 The bosses of retail giants including H&M, Amazon and Boohoo have been summoned to give evidence to a committee of MPs investigating the use of slave labour in the supply chains of UK companies. The Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Beis) committee is probing the extent to which businesses in the UK are exploiting the [...]
London lockdown: 200,000 hospitality workers to lose jobs this weekend, industry body warns October 16, 2020 About 200,000 hospitality workers in central London will lose their jobs this weekend as tier 2 coronavirus lockdown restrictions are imposed, the industry body’s chief executive has warned. UK Hospitality chief executive Kate Nicholls said the tier 2 lockdown, which prohibits people from separate households from mixing, is a “maximum squeeze on revenue with no [...]
John Lewis unveils five-year plan to return to profit October 16, 2020 John Lewis Partnership has set out plans to return to profit, with a £1bn investment in boosting its online business and a focus on expanding its non-retail offering. The firm this morning said it is aiming to report £400m in profit by the end of the five-year transformation plan. The department store chain, which also [...]
Pret axes 400 jobs amid further store closures October 16, 2020 Pret A Manger will cut 400 jobs and close a further six stores in London due to the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic in the UK. The struggling sandwich chain said the sales growth it had seen since April had slowed from September as Covid-19 injection rates began to rise. Pret declined to specify [...]
Superdry finance chief quits after 16 months October 16, 2020 Superdry has announced that its chief financial officer has stepped down after just 16 months in the role. The fashion brand’s share price dropped more than four per cent this morning after it announced that Nick Gresham had left the company with immediate effect. Superdry, which said Gresham had decided to leave the firm, has [...]
We’re heading from London lockdown to national breakdown October 16, 2020 While London entering Tier 2 lockdown at midnight tomorrow is nowhere near as drastic as the Tier 3 lockdown imposed on the Liverpool City Region, it’s the size and symbolism of the capital that counts. With each day that passes, businesses in the capital, like those around the rest of the country, can feel the [...]