Marks & Spencer shares slip as clothing underperformance weighs on Christmas trading January 9, 2020 Marks & Spencer’s Christmas performance was weakened by poor sales in its menswear business, after the retailer ordered too many skinny jeans in the wrong sizes. The high street chain said it over ordered skinny and slim-fit mens’ trousers, under-bought regular fit jeans and had too many small sizes and not enough medium and large. [...]
Credit card giant Newday set to buy finance platform Deko January 9, 2020 Credit card issuer Newday has reportedly agreed to purchase retail finance platform Deko in a bid to boost its tech credentials. Newday has reached a deal to acquire Deko for up to £40m, depending on the tech provider’s performance, Sky News reported. Read more: ‘Worst year on record’ for retailers in 2019 If the purchase [...]
Dunelm boosts sales despite shunning Black Friday January 9, 2020 Homeware brand Dunelm reported a jump in sales in the run-up to Christmas despite deciding not to take part in Black Friday discounting. Like-for-like sales increased five per cent in the second quarter while total growth, including the benefit of new stores, was 6.2 per cent following the launch of its new digital platform. Read [...]
Four challenges Sharon White must address at John Lewis January 9, 2020 Incoming John Lewis Partnership boss Sharon White will have a big job on her hands when she joins the retailer next month, as this morning’s trading update showed. The department store issued a profit warning today and made the surprise announcement that John Lewis managing director Paula Nickolds will leave the partnership in February. It [...]
John Lewis issues profit warning as MD steps down January 9, 2020 John Lewis & Partners issued a profit warning today and said its managing director will leave the struggling business next month after underwhelming Christmas sales. The retail partnership warned full-year profits will be “substantially down” on last year as it revealed significant drops in both John Lewis and Waitrose revenue. Read more: Four problems new [...]
Tesco sees Christmas sales rise for fifth year in a row January 9, 2020 Tesco delivered its fifth consecutive Christmas period of growth last year, outperforming its competitors in a tough retail environment. The grocer’s UK and Ireland division, which includes its wholesale business Booker, increased like-for-like sales by 0.4 per cent in the 19 weeks to 4 January due to a strong operational performance and competitive deals. Read [...]
All Bar One owner Mitchells & Butlers posts ‘good, not great’ Christmas sales January 9, 2020 Pub chain Mitchells & Butlers enjoyed a solid rise in like-for-like sales over Christmas, but suffered from strong comparative sales the year before. The core three-week festive period saw the firm’s pub chains – which include All Bar One, Ember Inns and Harvester – enjoy comparable sales growth of 5.6 per cent. Read more: Wetherspoon [...]
Card Factory shares dive as retailer warns on profit January 9, 2020 Shares in Card Factory plunged more than 19 per cent this morning after the retailer warned that profits will be lower than expected following a challenging Christmas trading period. The high street chain said full-year adjusted underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) will be in the range of £81m to £83m, reflecting [...]
‘Worst year on record’ for retailers in 2019 January 9, 2020 Last year was the worst 12 months on record for UK retailers, as overall annual sales dipped for the first time since 1995, according to the latest data. Total sales in 2019 fell 0.1 per cent, marking the worst year for retailers since records began 25 years ago, due to a year of political uncertainty [...]
Marks and Spencer’s former finance chief to join Belron January 8, 2020 Marks & Spencer’s ex-finance chief will make a swift return to the corporate world, only eight days after leaving the British retail stalwart. Humphrey Singer, who worked for Marks &Spencer’s for less than two years, will become the new chief financial officer at Belron, a vehicle glass repair firm. Read more: Ocado joint venture with [...]