Essential consumer spending slows as shoppers balance Christmas budgets January 10, 2019 Essential consumer spending growth in December fell to the lowest rate in more than two years as shoppers attempted to balance Christmas budgets. Spending on essential goods grew 1.8 per cent year-on-year last month, representing a contraction in real terms, according to data from Barclaycard. Clothing spending fell by three per cent and expenditure in department [...]
Card Factory reports flat sales for the full year amid challenging retail conditions January 10, 2019 Card Factory today reported a marginal slip in sales amid a tough consumer environment for high street retailers. The greeting card specialist said like-for-like sales dipped 0.1 per cent in the 11 months to the end of December, down from a three per cent increase the year before. The firm saw revenue growth of 3.4 [...]
Bike crash: Halfords share price plummets as mild weather and consumer confidence hit profits January 10, 2019 Shares in Halford have dropped through the floor as the company said mild weather and weak consumer confidence were set to hit its bottom line. The bikes and car parts seller said it was reducing expected profit before tax of between £58m and £62m, far down from November estimates that profit would be broadly in [...]
John Lewis considers slashing staff bonus as it warns on full-year profits January 10, 2019 John Lewis today said it may axe its staff bonus this year as it warned of falling profits, despite a rise in sales over the Christmas period. The department store saw sales increase 1.4 per cent to £2.2bn in the seven weeks to 5 January compared to the same period last year. Like-for-like sales at [...]
Marks & Spencer blames weak consumer confidence for drop in Christmas sales January 10, 2019 Sales slumped at Marks & Spencer over the key Christmas shopping period, the retailer said today, as analysts criticised its "outdated" business model for an over-reliance on high street shoppers. The figures Like-for-like UK sales fell by 2.2 per cent year on year in the three months to the end of December to hit £2.78bn. [...]
Tesco reports sales boost over Christmas period January 10, 2019 Tesco has beaten expectations after the supermarket reported a 2.6 per cent boost in like-for-like sales over the Christmas period. The sales success was driven by the grocer’s “festive five” vegetable offer, which sold 19.7m units over the three weeks to Christmas, promotions on lamb and beef joints and 25 per cent off six bottles [...]
Retail sector suffers worst Christmas in a decade as sales stagnate January 10, 2019 The UK retail sector has suffered its worst Christmas in a decade as sales stagnated during the crucial festive period, despite a string of positive updates offering a glimmer of hope. Overall retail sales were flat in December, the lowest level of growth since April and the worst festive performance since 2008, according to figures [...]
Aisle be damned: The knives are out for big UK grocers January 9, 2019 Aldi and Lidl’s tills jingled all the way in December – handing them their highest-ever combined market share for the festive season, data from Kantar Worldpanel showed this week. All the major supermarkets lost market share in the 12 weeks to 30 December as Aldi’s sales jumped 10.4 per cent while Lidl’s were up 9.4 [...]
Police appeal for clues in search for Heathrow drone suspect January 9, 2019 Police are appealing for information as they hunt for a drone which grounded flights at Heathrow yesterday. Officers were sent to the scene as a suspected drone was spotted flying over the country’s busiest airport at around 5pm yesterday afternoon. Read more: Heathrow Airport suspends departures after possible drone sighting Flights were grounded as police investigated [...]
Fat Face struggles over festive period as shopping model continues shifting to online January 9, 2019 Casual clothing retailer Fat Face’s Christmas sales fell flat, amid “tough” trading conditions after a solid performance in the six months to December. The company reported a six per cent drop in physical sales in December, driven by a shift to online sales both in the UK and internationally. Ecommerce sales were up 16 per [...]