John Lewis sales stall again February 18, 2011 John Lewis JLP.UL posted a fourth consecutive week of lacklustre sales, adding to evidence consumers are cutting back on spending in the face of macro economic headwinds. The employee-owned group, which has been outperforming the broader retail sector for over a year, said on Friday sales at its department stores increased 1.4 per cent to [...]
Style, charm and quiet in Marylebone February 17, 2011 THE idea of owning a luxurious home in central London is the sort of thing lots of upwardly-mobile urbanites aspired to. But given the chance, where and what do you go for? One of central London’s primary characteristics is the sheer range of localities, architectures and atmospheres all crammed into it. Grand apartment in Knightsbridge? [...]
Waitrose opens overseas February 13, 2011 WAITROSE is set to open one of five shops in the Channel Islands this week, in its first owner-operated venture outside the UK. The Thursday opening of its 21,000 square foot shop in St Saviour, Jersey, comes just a week after the retailer opened its first shop in Bahrain. However, unlike Bahrain, which is operated [...]
Ocado shares fall after John Lewis pension fund sells out February 11, 2011 Retailer John Lewis’s pension trust has sold its stake of about 10 per cent in online grocer Ocado – sending its shares down 17 per cent. Ocado, whose shares have climbed sharply in recent weeks, said the sale would not affect its commercial relations with upmarket grocer Waitrose, a John Lewis unit. Ocado mainly sells [...]
John Lewis warns over tough trading as sales fall February 4, 2011 John Lewis reported a second consecutive fall in weekly sales at its department stores and warned of tougher trading ahead as shoppers face higher prices, taxes and public spending cuts. However, the employee-owned group, which has long outperformed the broader retail sector, said on Friday it was still budgeting for growth for the year to [...]
Waitrose sales top £5bn February 3, 2011 Overall growth of almost 10 per cent over the past 12 months meant that Waitrose total sales hit £5bn for the first time in the year to 1 February 2011. The figure is made up of sales from Waitrose branches, Direct Services and food halls, as well as business partners, and was boosted by an [...]
Waitrose hits £5bn sales in record year at grocer January 31, 2011 WAITROSE has surpassed £5bn in sales for a year for the first time ever it said yesterday. Total sales growth for the 12 months starting 1 February 2010 now stands at almost ten per cent. Waitrose managing director Mark Prices said yesterday: “Five billion is a fitting finale to a year of growth and consistent [...]
John Lewis sales fall as shoppers feel pinch January 28, 2011 Department store John Lewis suffered a decline in sales last week, a sign that an increase in VAT sales tax has further weakened already fragile UK consumer spending. The retailer, which also owns supermarket chain Waitrose, said its department store sales fell 2.2 per cent to £50.1m in the week to January 22. Sales in [...]
FTSE climbs up from sluggish start January 24, 2011 From a sluggish start, the FTSE climbed until almost back through the 6,000 barrier, before falling slightly to close up 47.6 points or 0.81 per cent at 5,943.85. Defensive stocks gave the index strength while the market shrugged off early fears about banks after Saturday’s speech by John Vickers, chair of the Independent Commission on [...]
John Lewis in sharp sales rise January 21, 2011 Sales growth at department store chain John Lewis slowed dramatically last week as consumers tightened their belts after spending freely in the post-Christmas sales. The employee-owned retailer, which also runs upmarket grocery chain Waitrose, said on Friday department store sales increased 4.1 per cent to £55.8m in the week to January 15. Sales in the [...]