Retail Week
July 1 2011
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French competition authorities approve Saturn's 34 acquisitiion
The acquisition of Metro Group-controlled Saturn’s 34 Saturn consumer electronics stores in France has been approved by the French competition authorities with conditions. The chain is to be sold to HTM Group, the operator of the Boulanger banner, and is due to take effect today.HTM will take over existing staff, keeping all 34 stores operating and converting them gradually to the Boulanger banner after a trans -
Usdaw to raise concerns about Life & Style with Government
Shopworkers union Usdaw is writing to the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills to detail concerns over the running of fashion and homewares chain Life & Style and its predecessor company Ethel Austin. -
Al Fayed returns to retail by snapping up etailer Cocosa
Former Harrods owner Mohamed al-Fayed has made a return to retail by acquiring online retailer Cocosa. -
AlexandAlexa.com sells controlling stake
Independent luxury kidswear etailer Alexandalexa.com has sold a majority stake in the business to investment management firm Tiger Global, one of the original investors in social networking site Linkedin. -
Amazon to acquire online rival The Book Depository
Amazon has reached an agreement to acquire fast-growing online bookseller The Book Depository. -
American shoppers are loyalty card addicts
As an American in the UK, I have grown to accept certain things. Pre-packed sandwiches. The weather. Instant coffee. -
Aquascutum to open stores in Milan and Rome
Luxury British fashion brand Aquascutum has pushed the button on expansion plans and is set to open its first stand-alone stores overseas in the next year. -
Argos launches £4m ad campaign to promote same-day collection
Multichannel retailer Argos is to launch a £4m advertising campaign, including TV, radio and online, to promote its same-day collection service for online orders. -
At the crossroads
The fourth Retail Week Interiors finds the retail design industry at something of a turning point. -
Back to Asics
Running shoe brand Asics has opened a flagship store in Amsterdam that couples futuristic design with technology. John Ryan reports -
BrightHouse EBITDA jumps despite economic gloom
Rent to buy electricals and furniture retailer BrightHouse has defied the economic gloom by posting a 16.4% rise in underlying EBITDA to £39.7m in the year to March 31. -
Capital Shopping Centres reports rising retail sales and footfall
Property developer Capital Shopping Centres (CSC) said retail like-for-like sales in its centres have risen by an estimated 3% in the six months to June 30. -
Carpetright profits slump in the face of weak consumer demand
Floorings giant Carpetright has suffered a 40% plummet in underlying pre tax profit to £16.9m as weak consumer confidence hit the retailer. -
Carpetright sales improve at the expense of margins
Floorings giant Carpetright’ trading performance has improved, with domestic like-for-likes flat in the first quarter against a 6.3% slump in the fourth quarter of last year. -
Carrefour increases stakes in China
Carrefour has agreed to increase its majority stakes in three hypermarket operators in China, the retailer said in a statement. Carrefour will buy out Taiwan-based partner President’s 20% holding in Guangzhou and 45% stake in Tianjin Jiafu.It will also increase its holding in Chongqing to 65% from 55%. -
Clinton Cards mulls management buyout
Clinton Cards management has approached City banks with a plan to buy the company from the Stock Exchange. -
Colin Temple
The managing director of Schuh believes selling the business to Genesco makes good commercial sense, and is aiming for rapid expansion. By Gemma Goldfingle -
Conran and Radice to launch new department store concept
Furniture and homewares guru Sir Terence Conran and former Selfridges supremo Vittorio Radice are to work together on a project to develop a new department store concept. -
Consumer confidence back on the slide
Consumer confidence suffered a setback in June after a big leap in May. -
Consumers starting to ration as cost of living rises, says Asda
Consumers are suffering from a “toxic mix” of “facts and fear” about household incomes, eurozone debts and rising prices, according to Asda chief finance officer Judith McKenna. -
Crate & Barrel to make a play for the UK
US homeware chain Crate & Barrel is planning to bring CB2, a smaller version of its store, to the UK. -
Creator of iconic desert boot Nathan Clark dies
Nathan Clark, original designer of the iconic Clark’s desert boot and great grandson of Clark’s founder James Clark, has passed away aged 94. -
CSL sales up as it plots South East expansion
Sofa retailer Csl has reported like-for-like sales growth of 6% in the nine weeks to June 26 amid a punishing big ticket trading environment. -
Debenhams beats high street blues with like-for-likes rise
Department store group Debenhams has confounded harsh high street conditions and expects full year profits to meet expectations. -
Developing employees’ strengths
Waitrose is to produce development plans for every one of its staff. Rebecca Thomson reports -
DFS beats harsh trading conditions to post profits rise
Sofas specialist DFS has bucked the dismal furniture market trend to post a rise in EBITDA and flat sales in its most recent nine months’ trading. -
Discounter Lidl plans store expansion
Schwarz Group-owned discounter Lidl has plans to open stores not only in Lithuania’s five biggest cities, but also in every town with more than 20,000 inhabitants. Marius Kybartas, expansion director at Lidl’s Lithuanian subsidiary, said that Lidl is planning to build and open discount stores all over the country, adding that the retailer does not intend to acquire any existing grocery chains. -
Dixons subsidiary to develop Carrefour web offer
Dixons subsidiary Pixmania has signed a deal to develop an online non-food offer for French retail giant Carrefour. -
Does store design matter?
When trade is sticky, is there any point in digging deep to redesign stores? We ask four of those for whom design is a central preoccupation to justify their chosen discipline -
Dreams grows market share but profits drop
With turnover up to £300m, the beds specialist has grown its market share -
Edinburgh Woollen Mill "close" to Jane Norman deal
Edinburgh Woollen Mill is reported to be “close” to a deal for womenswear chain Jane Norman, which went into administration yesterday (June 27). -
Edinburgh Woollen Mill acquires Jane Norman but 33 stores to shut
Edinburgh Woollen Mill has bought the Jane Norman brand and 33 stores from administrator Zolfo Cooper. -
Edinburgh Woollen Mill 'enters race for Jane Norman'
Edinburgh Woollen Mill has entered the race to buy womenswear chain Jane Norman, according to reports in two of this morning’s papers. -
Ex-Tesco man McCann resurfaces at Ahold
Highly rated former Tesco and Carrefour man James McCann has joined Dutch grocer Ahold in a new role of chief commercial and development officer. -
Fashionation, Peek & Cloppenburg Berlin
Putting things politely, German department store Peek & Cloppenburg might be labelled somewhat conservative in its approach to store design and visual merchandising - this is probably not where you come for radical thinking. -
Forever 21 to open new flagship at Lakeside
US fashion giant Forever 21 is to open a store at Lakeside, Essex, Retail Week can reveal. -
Former Molton Brown chief exec joins Whittard
Tea specialist Whittard of Chelsea has appointed former Molton Brown chief executive Sara Halton as managing director as the retailer looks to expand. -
Garden Centre Group up for sale
Garden Centre Group (GCG), formerly known as Wyevale, is due to be put up for sale by its main lender Lloyds Banking Group next month. -
General retailers defy market and bad news
Retailers may have gone down like dominoes over the week but despite the slew of bad news publicly quoted general retailers were up versus the market generally. -
Habitat’s London stores may still not survive
You have to wonder whether all three of the remaining UK Habitat store are enjoying a temporary stay of execution. -
Hard-pressed shoppers turn to cash and debit cards
Cautious customers are turning from credit cards to cash and debit cards to better manage their finances research from the BRC showed. -
HMV chiefs outline new vision after awful year
HMV chiefs have reaffirmed their faith in the retailer after a terrible year, and set an operating margin target of between 3% and 4%. -
HMV sells Canadian business to Hilco
HMV has sold its Canadian business to restructuring firm Hilco. -
Home is where the hurt is
With the high-profile collapse of Habitat and a struggling big-ticket market, what does the future hold for home specialists? Nicola Harrison reports -
Home Retail confirms Habitat deal, but rest of UK business enters administration
Home Retail Group has confirmed that it has bought some parts of Habitat UK for £24.5m, but the rest of the business has entered administration. -
Iceland's Walker in talks with Goldman Sachs for deal finance
Iceland tycoon Malcom Walker is in talks with Goldman Sachs about backing his efforts to retain control of the frozen foods specialist. -
In focus: New Look
Until 2010, New Look was one of fashion retailing’s winners, enjoying double-digit sales growth in five of the previous six years and consistently high operating margins -
Inditex is made to measure for tough market conditions
The release of the second-quarter results of the two largest global fashion retailers, Inditex and H&M has sparked discussion that the Spanish company is on the verge of overtaking H&M, as the most valuable listed fashion retailer. -
Jane Norman in administration
Zolfo Cooper has been drafted in as administrator of fashion group Jane Norman. -
Jane Norman store closure list revealed
The 33 stores that will close as a result of Jane Norman’s administration have been revealed. -
Jane Norman’s former life
Sometimes the wires get crossed even in the rocket-scientist world of the City bankers. -
JML to focus on growth through supply division
Retailer and supplier JML is to grow through its supply arm despite a profits jump in home shopping -
John Lewis weekly sales rise almost 8%
Department store chain John Lewis enjoyed its best trading of the half-year so far last week, when sales rose 8.6% to £57m. -
Judith McKenna promoted to become Asda chief operating officer
Asda has named Judith McKenna as chief operating officer, succeeding Simon King. -
Kesa forecasts slashed as costs rise
Anglo-French electricals group Kesa, which last week posted full-year results and confirmed it may sell UK chain Comet, is on broker Shore Capital’s sell list. -
Kicking the red tape habit
“The Red Tape Challenge in a way has slightly backfired. People who want more regulation are bombarding the website… if you want to get your voice heard you’ve got to muck in because you’ll be drowned out if you don’t.” -
Knight Vinke urges Comet demerger rather than sale
Knight Vinke, the activist investors with a 20% stake in Kesa, has urged the electricals group not to sell UK chain Comet. -
Knight Vinke: no objection to sale of Comet
Activist investor Knight Vinke has said it has no objection to Kesa selling its UK electrical chain Comet. -
Kroger to concentrate on existing markets
David Dillon, chief executive of US grocer Kroger, has said the retailer will concentrate its efforts on pushing sales at existing stores, rather than seek to enter new markets or make acquisitions. Speaking at the company’s AGM, Dillon said even though several small chains had been snapped up in recent years, acquisitions are definitely not part of the company’s growth plan for the time being. Instead, its loyalty card will become a key focus, particularly through encouraging cardholders to -
Lawson to expand product range
Convenience store operator Lawson plans to expand the product range sold at its convenience stores and radically reform its business model to resemble that of the Uniqlo clothing chain. Under its new growth strategy, Lawson will increase the number of stores selling fresh produce.While the company has been pushing this concept for years, the recent disasters in Japan have prompted it to step up its expansion plan.The retailer will increase the number of stores offering perishabl -
Lining up an Olympic opportunity
With less than three months before opening, Rebecca Thomson visits Westfield Stratford as it prepares for the 2012 games to commence -
M&S launches earlier summer Sale
Retail bellwether Marks & Spencer launched its seasonal Sale today, a fortnight earlier than last year. -
Macy’s begins shipping to UK
US department store chain Macy’s is making a play for the UK as it opens up its website to customers here -
Mamas & Papas aims for 30 more UK stores in five-year expansion
Maternity retailer Mamas & Papas is to focus on expanding domestically and overseas as well as online as part of its a five-year strategy. -
Mamut completes Waterstone's deal
Russian tycoon Alexander Mamut has completed the £53m purchase of Waterstone’s. -
Massmart to focus on integration with Walmart
Massmart has said that it is focused on integration with Walmart now that the deal has been approved, particularly in terms of governance, procurement processes and sharing best practice. Massmart chief executive Grant Pattison said the company is first and foremost putting in place measures to implement the conditions the Competition Tribunal imposed when it approved the deal.Massmart’s management team has -
Metro Group prepares for sale of hypermarket chain Real
Metro Group is said to be preparing for the sale of its hypermarket chain Real, which has been completely refurbished, with underperforming hypermarkets closed and costs reduced. Sale talks with financial investors are currently underway.Nothing concrete is in place yet, as Metro - which is looking to sell the chain as a whole - is only at the discussion stage. One point of contention is said to be the high ren -
Miriam Lahage
European general manager of fashion, eBay -
Moonpig in exclusive sale talks with Photobox
Moonpig is in exclusive sale talks with online photo business Photobox, which is interested in acquiring the online greetings card retailer. -
Mothercare under fire over executive pay
Maternity retailer Mothercare has been lambasted by an activist shareholder for the “highly excessive” incentive payments awarded to its senior directors. -
Motorised Dalek tipped as Christmas big-seller
A £200 motorised Dalek is among toy retailer Hamleys’ top tips for Christmas big-sellers this year -
New boss lined up for Bonmarche
Duke Street, the private equity group, has lined up a new chief executive for womenswear retailer Bonmarché, should it complete a purchase of the fashion chain. -
New MD will kick-start Ann Summers rebrand
Ann Summers’ new managing director Vanessa Gold will kick-start a rebrand of the business when she takes the helm at the lingerie and sex toy specialist. -
Next nets £65m as it sells its customer service business Ventura
Fashion chain Next has sold its third party customer service business Ventura to support services company Capita for £65m. -
Ocado posts first interim pre-tax profit and strikes deal with Carrefour
Online grocer Ocado has reported pre-tax profitability in its first-half and struck a deal with French giant Carrefour to distribute selected goods in the UK. -
On being a winner
The Retail Week Interiors Awards have proved, over their 14 years, to be a real feather in the cap of retailers seeking recognition for their store designs, but is there more to winning than this? John Ryan reports -
On budget and on time?
What does a project manager do and what is the best approach for a particular task? John Ryan reports -
Portas to meet Tesco boss Brasher
Mary Portas, the TV personality appointed by Prime Minister David Cameron to advise on the future of the high street, will start work this week with the first of a series of high-level meetings with the UK’s top retailers. -
Promotions on the up as retailers chase trade
Beleaguered retailers are going on Sale earlier in a bid to lure shoppers and boost spending. -
Putting Asda into context
Being the best in an area is sometimes better than reigning supreme overall. -
QR codes
They’re meaningless hieroglyphics to some but for those in the know, QR codes allow retailers to engage with customers via their smartphones -
Reaping what you sow
It’s no coincidence that a flurry of retailers have hit the wall in the past week -
Retail’s week of woe could be just the start
In bad times, weak retailers fail. None of the names that have hit difficulty in the past week will have come as a surprise to anyone who follows the sector. -
Rite Aid reports level revenue
Rite Aid has reported revenues of $6.4bn (£4.01bn) for the first quarter ended May 28, unchanged on the figure for last year’s first quarter.Like-for-like sales increased 0.8% as front-end like-for-likes were flat and pharmacy like-for-likes rose 1.1%.Net losses were $63.1m (£39.6bn) compared with last year’s first quarter net loss of $73.7m (£46.26bn). Rite Aid confirmed it was expecting like-for-like sales to range from an increase of between 0.5% and 2% over the 2011 financia -
Robert Dyas hires Stephen McVey as chief executive
Hardware and homewares retailer Robert Dyas has appointed Stephen McVey as chief executive, Retail Week can reveal. -
Sales improve at N Brown
Home shopping group N Brown has reported an improving sales trend but has sacrificed some margin to prompt shoppers to spend. -
Schuh to step up UK growth following sale
Footwear retailer Schuh is to accelerate expansion in the UK following the sale of the 59-store business to US-based retail group Genesco for £125m last week. -
Select set to open 30 new stores
Young fashion chain Select is set to bolster its store portfolio with 30 store openings this year. -
Shop Direct hires new Very boss as Asda suffers another departure
Home shopping group Shop Direct has poached Asda marketing director Jon Owen to lead its flagship brand Very. -
Should retailers provide multichannel offers?
Is it now essential for retailers to provide a multichannel offer? -
Start of Clearance fires John Lewis sales
John Lewis sales soared 18.2% excluding VAT in the week to 25 June, with the start of its Clearance sale driving a strong week. -
Store closures: why the internet is not to blame
The internet doesn’t kill retailers, retailers do. -
Super markets
Food retail store design thinking says that supermarkets lack character and that if elements of traditional markets can be put into them, all will be well. But is this viable? John Ryan reports -
Tesco begins selling double glazing
Supermarket giant Tesco has begun selling double glazing in another example of its unrelenting quest to broaden its product and service offer. -
Tesco row hits supplier profits
Food giant Premier Foods has partly blamed a proft warning on the delisting of some of its Hovis products by Tesco. -
Tesco shines in central Europe
As headlines here were dominated by retailer collapses such as Habitat and Homeform, Tesco was reminding the City of its international counterweight to the troubled UK market. -
The floor is all yours
Floor coverings might not be the first thing a retailer thinks about when envisaging a shiny new store format or reviving a tired shop, but few elements of a store interior can make such a dramatic difference or enable a store to hit this year’s on-trend quite so definitely. -
The Hut drafts in IPO advisers
Online retailer The Hut, which is chaired by former Matalan chief executive Angus Monro and in which Sir Stuart Rose and Sir Terry Leahy are investors, is poised to name advisers ahead of a potential IPO. -
The importance of promotions
At the supermarket recently a staff member on the public address system announced the latest offers available. -
The innovation generation
Tough times in the retail sector have undoubtedly reduced R&D budgets but the industry continues to prove itself capable of genuine innovation. By Mark Faithfull -
The not-so-usual suspects
Customers are increasingly defying stereotypes, so fitting them into traditional marketing segments is getting harder. Rebecca Thomson finds out how to deal with the changes -
The Sting takes second store at Westfield Stratford
Dutch fashion retailer The Sting is to take its second London store at Westfield Stratford. -
The world, C&A style
European value retailer C&A has created a new format for its stores that has been trialled at the Cologne flagship. John Ryan reports -
Thorntons to slash number of company-owned stores
Thorntons plans to close at least 120 stores, and may close a further 60 more, following the completion of its strategic review. -
Time to mobilise
Retailers need to capitalise on how mobile devices are changing habits, says Simon Burke -
TJ Hughes in administration: potential buyers circle
Discount department store group TJ Hughes collapsed into administration this morning, Retail Week has learned. -
TJ Hughes puts administrators on standby
TJ Hughes has today filed an intention to appoint an administrator, making it the fourth retailer within a week to call in the administrators, Retail Week can reveal. -
VAT rise floated at furniture crisis summit
Retailers have hit out after the prospect of a further rise in VAT was floated at a crisis meeting last week between furniture retailers, the Department for Business and the Bank of England. -
Waitrose targets London for convenience store format
Supermarket chain Waitrose is to open 20 “Little Waitrose” convenience stores in and around London over the next 18 months as it goes head-to-head with Marks & Spencer on the high street and Ocado online. -
Walmart to launch new store format
Walmart is to launch a new store format called Urban 90 in east Toronto in January 2012. Walmart Canada’s president and chief executive David Cheesewright said the initial urban store would be on a 4.5 acre site, roughly half the size of a typical Walmart site. Walmart also announced it has bought the leasehold rights to 39 former Zellers stores from Target Canada. The move to acquire the Zellers sites would give W -
Waterstone's operations and commercial directors exit
Bookseller Waterstone’s has revealed that commercial director Michael Neil and operations director Roger Childs will be leaving the business with immediate effect. -
Westfield reveals plans for £1bn White City extension
Consultation on Westfield’s plans for a new £1bn mixed-use quarter directly to the north of the Westfield London shopping centre in White City, west London, has begun. -
What it’s like to work at JML...
The inside view from head of creative Thomas Bateman -
Which area of online retail achieves the most growth?
Which area of my online retail business should I focus attention on the most to achieve higher growth? -
Whole Foods Market sets sight on store growth
Whole Foods Market sees the potential to more than triple its number of US stores, co-chief executive Walter Robb has said. Robb feels Whole Foods can grow its domestic store base from about 300 currently to 1,000 in the longer term.In Canada, the retailer is also looking to ramp up expansion with the longer-term goal of growing from the current six stores to 35. Robb said that the company also plans to open five wellness clubs in different cities around the US. Members will pay a $50 -
Worse to come?
More misery expected as retailers collapse and pressure on disposable income mounts
