Every little helps Tesco take on German disruptors January 20, 2016 It seems the Big Four supermarkets are fighting back against German disruptors Aldi and Lidl, with big beast Tesco reporting better-than-expected figures for the Christmas period. Despite gloomy City forecasts, the news saw Tesco shares spike as optimism returned for the future of the embattled retailer with the turnaround being spurred by lower prices on some [...]
Tesco, Sainsbury’s and M&S are among most praised companies by NGOs but VW and Royal Dutch Shell make “naughty” list of most criticised January 18, 2016 Tesco, Sainsbury's and M&S are certainly not having the best of times on the high street these days, but there's one place their winning at least. The three are among several of the biggest global companies to make a "nice" list of companies which pressure groups and campaigners across the world, from the likes of Which? to Greenpeace, have [...]
Asda will axe jobs in the UK as supermarket struggles continue January 18, 2016 Asda will axe jobs in the UK amid increasing pressure on British supermarkets. The redundancies will be at Walmart-owned supermarket's Leeds head office. The supermarket said in a statement: "It’s well documented that in recent years, customers have radically changed the way they shop. "We were the first of the “big four” to recognise this and [...]
From retail mania and the Tube strike to oil prices and the Chinese economy: Here’s what got us talking this week January 15, 2016 We all got invited to a very special birthday party, while someone else got an early birthday present. Meanwhile, the details of Boris Johnson's Iraq antics were leaked. Oh no, BoJo. Here's what got us talking this week 1) Ground control to major Tim The world mourned as we digested the news that David Bowie had died [...]
Asda owner Walmart to close 269 stores as it ditches Walmart Express, its smallest-format chain, five years after they launched January 15, 2016 Asda owner Walmart has announced plans to close 269 stores – and scrapped its experiment with small-format stores altogether five years after they first launched. It seems US consumers' buying habits are vastly different to their British counterparts'… The supermarket giant – the world's largest company by number of employees, with 2.1m workers – said it was making the changes to "ensure [...]
The count is in: These are the retail winners and losers for Christmas 2015 (according to Hargreaves Lansdown) January 15, 2016 After a busy few days chock-full of Christmas retail results, we're finally beginning to get a sense of who the winners and losers of 2015's festive period might be. Yesterday, Tesco surprised investors with better-than-expected results, rounding off a solid performance among the UK's traditional supermarket sector – although Asda is still yet to report. Marks & [...]
After doing better than expected over Christmas, is there a case for being bullish on Tesco? January 15, 2016 Philip Dorrell, partner at Retail Remedy retail consultants, says Yes. Tesco has reached bottom and is now on the way back up. Pre and post Christmas, the supermarket appeared to have the best availability and store operational improvements of all the Big 4. The marketing campaign was solid, back to its roots with a bit of [...]
Big Four fight back: Asda, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s and Tesco report rising sales after years of stagnation January 15, 2016 Tesco became the third supermarket to reveal better-than expected Christmas results yesterday, in the clearest sign yet that the industry is staging a successful fightback against German discounters Aldi and Lidl. The so-called big four – Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda and Morrisons – have been battling to respond to changing shopping habits and reverse the tide [...]
Petrol prices plummet, but what’s that got to do with the price of water? January 14, 2016 As we all know, the oil industry is not having a great time. Brent crude fell to below $30 (£20.80) a barrel for the first time since 2004 on Wednesday, and now there’s panic in the press at the idea that petrol, now 86p per litre, might become cheaper than water. The Institute of Economic [...]
Is Tesco saved? A small victory for Dave Lewis in the supermarket’s Christmas results, but 2016 remains a challenge January 14, 2016 Tesco reported its best Christmas trading results since Dave Lewis has been at the helm but does this really mean that ‘Drastic Dave’ and his management team can breathe a little easier? The dynamics of grocery shopping has changed with value and convenience the two biggest factors for consumers. Competition has never been fiercer so it would [...]