Turning it on: 2 per cent of men shop online while having sex August 26, 2014 Despite weakening retail sales, we are well established as a nation of shopaholics – but a new survey suggests we are taking our addiction to new extremes, with 2 per cent of men apparently shopping online during sex. Women are also at it – although not quite as regularly – with one in 100 [...]
Serious strategy: What chess can teach businesses August 25, 2014 Stay on the lookout for “strong squares”, and be ready to sacrifice. There's a rich history of corporate strategists turning to board and card games to hone their skills. Bill Gates and Warren Buffett are keen bridge players, and Business Insider drew up a list of 28 US executives who are strong chess players. [...]
Food spending falls for first time in 25 years as supermarkets wage price wars August 21, 2014 Spending on groceries has fallen for the first time since records began 25 years ago, laying bare the challenges facing Britain’s supermarkets in winning over cash-strapped shoppers. The amount spent in food stores fell 1.3 per cent in July compared with the same time last year, according to the Office for National Statistics, which put [...]
WH Smith says it expects strong results for the year August 21, 2014 WH Smith announced this morning that it expects positive results for the year ending 31 August. In a pre-close trading update released today, the British book/newspaper/stationery retailer said its high street, railway and airport businesses had all performed well over the last year. It added that its new store opening programme remains on track, [...]
Retail sales are up, according to the ONS (but not everyone agrees) August 21, 2014 Retail sales rose 2.6 per cent year on year in July, according to the Office for National Statistics – in contrast to the British Retail Consortium figures that claimed retail sales had fallen 0.3 per cent in the same month. The ONS – whose figures are consistently at odds with those provided by the [...]
Fashion wars… a Lidl bit of what you fancy August 20, 2014 The invasion of supermarkets into the fashion sector is hotting up after hard discounter Lidl announced yesterday it was entering the fray. The German retailer is to launch a new fashion range for women next Monday, including ankle boots for £9.99 and even a faux leather jacket for £15. Lidl already sells basic clothing such [...]
Lidl clothing range: Discount retailer challenges British supermarkets on fashion front August 20, 2014 Not content with challenging big British supermarkets on food prices, discount favourite Lidl is taking the stores on in the fashion stakes. The German retailer is about to launch a fashion range for women that includes jeans, shoes and even leather jackets, with a men's range to follow later this year. From August 25th shoppers [...]
Britain on track to spend more than £100bn online this year August 18, 2014 A surge in the number of Britons booking their next holiday abroad helped online retail sales bounce back in July after a disappointing first half of the year. Consumers spent an estimated £8.1bn online in July, a 14 per cent jump on the same month last year, according to figures published yesterday by e-tail industry [...]
Retailers return to stores even as footfall dips August 17, 2014 UK high streets are getting less and less empty as the economic recovery continues, even as fewer shoppers actually head for shops. The British Retail Consortium (BRC) and Springboard revealed this morning that the vacancy rate in UK town centres had dropped to just 10.1 per cent in July, half a percentage point down from [...]
US shareholder increases stake in Carpetright to almost a fifth August 14, 2014 CARPETRIGHT investor Franklin Templeton Institutional has increased its stake in the troubled high street flooring specialist to almost 20 per cent. The US investment manager has upped its stake in the business from 10.9m to 13.4m shares, giving it a 19.79 per cent holding in the company, according to a regulatory filing published yesterday. The [...]