Retail Week
June 24 2011

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Alex Gourlay

Chief executive, health and beauty, Alliance Boots
Andy Clarke

Chief executive, Asda
Andy Street

Managing director, John Lewis
Angela Ahrendts

Chief executive, Burberry
Charlie Mayfield

Chairman, John Lewis Partnership
Euan Sutherland

Chief executive, Kingfisher UK & Ireland
Fran Minogue

The grande dame of retail search sent shockwaves through the sector earlier this year by quitting global search firm Heidrick & Struggles. Placements over the past year have included Allan Leighton at Peacocks and Paul Mason at Cath Kidston. Her next plans are not yet clear, but she is sure to make waves.
Gavin George

European managing director, GA Europe
George Osborne

Chancellor
Harold Tillman

Chairman, British Fashion Council
John Browett

Chief executive, Dixons
John Dixon

Executive director, food, Marks & Spencer
Julian Dunkerton

Founder, SuperGroup
Kate Swann

Chief executive, WHSmith
Magnus Olsson

Managing director UK & Ireland, H&M
Malcolm Walker

Chief executive, Iceland
Michael Sharp

Deputy chief executive, Debenhams
Mike Ashley

Executive deputy chairman, Sports Direct
Paul Marchant

Chief executive, Primark
Paul Sweetenham

President, TJX Europe
Philip Clarke

Chief executive, Tesco
Richard Brasher

UK chief executive, Tesco
Rick Bendel

International chief marketing officer, Asda
Sir Philip Green

Owner, Arcadia and Bhs
‘No silver bullet’ for Comet

Electricals retailer to press ahead with turnaround strategy as options for business are considered
300 jobs axed as Life & Style closes 22 stores

Bust homeware and fashion retailer Life & Style, which was born out of the ashes of Ethel Austin, is closing 22 of it 150 stores and making 274 people redundant as administrators RSM Tenon continue talks with potential buyers.
A whole new lesson in Anthropologie

US lifestyle brand Anthropologie’s inspired visual merchandising rarely fails to impress, but is its third UK store and its first in Scotland sufficiently different from its London outposts? John Ryan visits
Abercrombie & Fitch plans Hollister launch in France

France
Alan White

Chief executive, N Brown
Alexander Mamut

Owner, Waterstone’s
Alistair McGeorge

Executive chairman, New Look
AlixPartners

Consumers are under increasing pressure, and a number of retailers have been feeling the full force of this.
Allan Leighton

Chairman, Peacocks
American Express

The UK retail sector saw a rebound in spending at the end of 2009, and a recovery in 2010, with spending almost returning to pre-downturn levels.
Analysis: Sizing up the high street

When it comes to online, multichannel retailers are trumping pure-plays, so it’s no surprise plus-size fashion retailer N Brown is heading for the high street.
Andrew Harrison

President, Best Buy Europe
Andrew Moore

Managing director, George, Asda
Argos owner in talks to buy Habitat

Home Retail Group, owner of Argos and Homebase, is understood to be in talks to buy parts of the UK operation of Habitat in a deal worth £20m-£30m.
Argos TV shopping channel goes live

Catalogue store group Argos has launched its TV shopping service, adding another platform to its multichannel offer.
Asda clocks up £1bn ethnic and local produce sales

Asda has clocked up £1bn of sales since it began working with local and ethnic suppliers, and it is gunning to reach a £500m annual sales target by 2013.
Asda COO Simon King exits

Asda chief operating officer Simon King has left the grocer just six months after joining.
Asda Income Tracker: Weekly spending power shows largest decline on record

Consumers suffered a £14 a week fall in family spending power in May compared to the previous year – the largest decline on record.
Asda should be doing better in tough times

It hasn’t been a good week for Asda. To lose a COO after six months might be considered bad luck, to have lost 0.4% of market share as well starts to look a bit careless.
Asda takes market share hit

Asda’s market share slipped in the latest Kantar figures from 16.7% last year to 16.3%, while the discounters stole a larger share of shopper spend.
Ben Gordon

Chief executive, Mothercare
Best Buy extends online streaming into Canada

As the entertainment industry continues with its rapid shift to digital media, Best Buy is to launch its CinemaNow video download service in Canada.
Best Buy records a 1.7% fall in sales

Electricals giant Best Buy recorded a 1.7% fall in like-for-like sales during its first quarter ended May 28. Total sales grew by 1.4% to $10.9bn (£6.74bn ), but fell 0.8% in the US domestic market to $7.86bn (£4.86bn).Internationally the picture was better, with sales up 7.6% to $3.08bn (£1.9bn), or a 0.4% increase on a like-for-like basis. This was mainly driven by the Five Star business in China. Growth categories in the US includ
Best Buy rumoured to be mulling Dixons bid

US electrical giant Best Buy is rumoured to be sizing up a bid for UK rival Dixons.
Best Buy UK big boxes lose £62m in first year

Best Buy’s fledgling big box business lost £62.2m in its first full year of operating in the UK, joint venture partner Carphone Warehouse reported.
Betting on Dunkerton

It was a big day last week for fashion specialist SuperGroup when the City’s scribblers descended on Cheltenham for a bit of speed-dating with the management.
Boots UK appoints joint chief operating officers

Alliance Boots health and beauty chief executive Alex Gourlay has appointed two chief operating officers to look after the day-to-day running of the Boots UK & Ireland business while he concentrates on future growth plans.
BT Retail Week Technology Awards winners revealed

The winners of the BT Retail Week Technology Awards 2011 were announced at a ceremony in London last night.
BT Retail Week Technology Awards: IT's big night out

Last night’s BT Retail Week Technology Awards gave IT teams from across the industry a chance to shine (and show off their Scalextric skills).
Business as usual, but faster

Retailers are adjusting to the new post-recession market, which means never allowing their businesses to stand still. By Joanna Perry
Can't get no satisfaction?

The only was to let landlords know you’re a dissatisfied tenant is to tell them
Carrefour expects to post a drop in operating income

France
Carrefour, Aubervilliers, Paris

All too often, you get to see a ‘concept’ store from which you are told ‘learnings’ will be extracted
Cath Kidston opens in St Pancras

Kitsch homewares and fashion retailer Cath Kidston has opened its first shop in a train station, in St Pancras International, London.
Charles Dunstone

Chairman, Carphone Warehouse
Chief leaves Land Securities retail venture as ambitions scaled back

Land Securities has parted company with the head of its Brand Empire venture, designed to help new retailers open in the UK, and dissolved an agreement to open stores with one of its partners.
Chris North

Managing director, Amazon UK
City speculates on Abercrombie bid for SuperGroup

US retailer Abercrombie & Fitch may be interested in acquiring trendy fashion retailer SuperGroup, City speculators believe.
Climbers & Fallers

The top climbers and top fallers between the 2010 and 2011 Retail Week Power Lists
Cocosa launches travel deals as Al-Fayed discussions continue

Private sales fashion site Cocosa has launched travel deals on its website.
Co-op buys 3 Netto shops

The Co-operative Group has bought three Netto stores from Asda for an undisclosed sum.
Dalton Philips

Chief executive, Morrisons
Darren Blackhurst

Chief executive, Matalan
David Cameron

Prime Minister
David Kenningham

Executive director retail, CB Richard Ellis
David Wild

Chief executive, Halfords
Debenhams tables bid for Jane Norman

Debenhams has tabled a bid to acquire the stock and brand of fashion chain Jane Norman, it is understood.
Derek Lovelock

Executive chairman, Aurora Fashions
Developing markets key as Tesco aims to deliver further growth

Tesco is aiming to double its returns from the developing markets it operates in by opening smaller shops and focusing on store environment, online and supply chain efficiencies.
Dilip Patel

Managing director, Inditex
Does localism have implications for warehouse development?

Does the Government’s localism strategy have implications for any new warehouse development?
Does spending money on point of sale drive sales?

In the current economic climate does spending money on point of sale still drive sales?
Don McCarthy

Chairman, House of Fraser and Aurum
East pre-tax profits up 9.5%

Womenswear retailer East has reported pre-tax profits up 9.5% from £2.1m to £2.27m for the year to January 31, 2011, driven by the strong performance of its existing portfolio and new store openings.
EBay hires Cocosa marketing director to strengthen its fashion team

EBay has hired Cocosa marketing director Amanda Metcalfe to bolster its fashion team.
Facebook fans each bring 20 visits a year

One Facebook fan brings 20 additional visits to a typical retail website over a year, and top retailers who have no fans at all can still receive on average 62,000 visits a month from the social network.
Fate of Life & Style lies in hands of administrators

The administrators of bust homewares and fashion retailer Life & Style, born out of the ashes of Ethel Austin, will decide on Monday whether to sell it as a going concern or liquidate it, it is understood.
Former Asda boss Andy Bond sets up investment vehicle

Former Asda chief executive Andy Bond has set up a retail investment vehicle with a team of City bankers.
French retailer Casino raises its stake in Brazil's largest retailer

French retailer Casino has raised its stake in Brazil’s largest retailer Companhia Brasileira de Distribuiçao to 37% after buying 3.3% of the company’s shares on the market.Companhia Brasileira de Distribuiçao is jointly controlled by Casino and the Diniz family through a 50:50 joint venture holding company called Wilkes. A shareholder agreement signed by both gives Casino an option to buy the Diniz stake in 2012.
Game appoints new boss of UK and northern Europe

Game has hired Tom Devine as regional managing director of the UK and northern Europe.
Game sales decline prompts downgrades from analysts

Game group like-for-likes dropped 11.3% in the 19 weeks to June 11 as the retailer was hit by a worse than expected decline in the games market.
Game shareholders revolt over pay

Shareholders in entertainment specialist Game staged a revolt against the retailer’s remuneration stance at yesterday’s AGM.
Godfrey Davis

A decade ago Mulberry was in the financial doldrums, now the luxury retailer is hitting the headlines for all the right reasons. Rebecca Thomson talks to the man behind the turnaround
H&M profits plunge as cotton and labour prices soar

Swedish fashion giant H&M first half profits plunged as cotton prices and sourcing inflation soared.
H&M signs Donatella Versace as guest designer

H&M has signed up Italian designer Donatella Versace to be its next guest designer.
Haldanes enters administration

Haldanes has gone into administration with 600 employees being made redundant.
High-profile exits
Hobbs secures £46.5m funding to accelerate expansion

Womenswear retailer Hobbs has secured £46.5m funding to accelerate brand development and retail expansion.
Homeform files notice to appoint administrator

Kitchens, bedrooms and bathrooms group Homeform has filed a notice to appoint an administrator.
Homeform unites its brands for Sale push

Kitchens, bedrooms and bathrooms group Homeform is launching a new ad campaign uniting its three brands for the first time.
How sport can motivate a workforce

John Lewis is encouraging staff to train as sport coaches. Rebecca Thomson finds out more
Ian Cheshire

Chief executive, Kingfisher
Ian Filby

Chief executive, DFS
Ian Grabiner

Chief executive, Arcadia
Ian Shepherd

Chief executive, Game
Ian Shepherd

Group chief executive, Game
Iceland is not for sale

Vultures are supposedly circling, but Iceland is fighting fit and battle-ready, says Malcolm Walker
In focus: Monsoon Accessorize

Monsoon Accessorize faces more issues than most retailers, many assessed in Retail Week Knowledge Bank’s update of Peter Simon’s international womenswear and accessories chain.
In pictures: BT Retail Week Technology Awards 2011

Photos from the BT Retail Week Technology Awards 2011
Inditex fares better than rival H&M as global sales soar

Inditex, owner of the Zara chain, fared better than rival H&M as its global sales soared 11% in its first quarter.
Inflation remains unchanged at 4.5% in May

Inflation remained unchanged at 4.5% in May, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Inflexion completes Ideal acquisition for £78.3m

Private equity firm Inflexion has completed the acquisition of multichannel retailer Ideal Shopping Direct for £78.3m.
Investors should drop idea of UK Retail plc, says analyst

Investors should abandon the idea of ‘UK Retail plc’, a label which has outlived its usefulness, Peel Hunt analyst John Stevenson has argued.
Jacqueline Gold

Chief executive, Ann Summers
James Daunt

Managing director, Waterstone’s
Jan Hall

Partner, JCA Group
JD Sports acquires Cecil Gee and Spanish sports retailer Sprinter

JD Sports has acquired menswear retailer Cecil Gee and a controlling stake in Spanish sports retailer Sprinter.
Jeff Bezos

Founder, president and chief executive, Amazon
Jewellers alarm as Channel 4 targets them over gold mines

Retailers’ ethical sourcing is in the spotlight once again as Channel 4 prepares to air a Dispatches programme focusing on how high street jewellers source their gold.
Jim McCarthy

Chief executive, Poundland
John King

Chief executive, House of Fraser
John Lewis fashion sales leap as prices cut

Department store chain John Lewis generated strong fashion sales last week as it price-matched rivals’ promotions.
John Lewis hoists Westfield Stratford sign

John Lewis unwrapped and hoisted the sign for its Westfield Stratford City store this week.
John Lewis to open home store in Ashford

John Lewis is further expanding its ‘at home’ concept with a new store in Ashford, Kent which is due to open in autumn 2012.
Jonathan Smith

Head of the consumer goods & services Practice, Spencer Stuart
Joseph Wan

Chief executive, Harvey Nichols
Judith McKenna

Finance director, Asda
Justin King

Chief executive, Sainsbury’s
Kate Bostock

Executive director, general merchandise, Marks & Spencer
Kroger reports 11% sales increase

Supermarket chain Kroger reported an 11% increase in sales (including fuel) to $27.5bn (£17bn) for its first quarter ended May 21. Excluding fuel, sales increased by 4.8% over the same period last year. A 4.6% increase in like-for-like sales together with cost savings boosted net profit 15.6% to $432.3m (£267.4m).The company drew more frequent shoppers through loyalty rewards as the price of food and fuel rose. The company estimated that price rises, excluding fuel, reached 3.5% in tot
L’Occitane appoints former Blacks director to accelerate UK growth

French cosmetics retailer L’Occitane has hired former Blacks Leisure retail director Joseph Ulloa to head up its UK business.
Laura Wade-Gery

Executive director, multichannel and ecommerce, Marks & Spencer
Lombok to open first concession in House of Fraser

Furniture chain Lombok is to open its first concession in department store House of Fraser as it seeks to expand cautiously.
Lord Harris

Founder and chairman, Carpetright
Loss-making Comet to close 17 stores

Electricals retailer Kesa said Comet slumped into the red in the year to April 30, making a loss of £8.9m compared with retail profit of £11.5m the year before.
Lucy Neville-Rolfe

Corporate and legal affairs director, Tesco
Luke Jensen

Managing director of non-food, Sainsbury’s
Malcolm Walker, as you've never seen him before

This is Malcolm Walker, dressed in a yeti costume on Mount Everest.
Marc Bolland

Chief executive, Marks & Spencer
Mark Newton-Jones

Chief executive, Shop Direct Group
Mark Price

Managing director, Waitrose
Martin Hansson

Country manager, Ikea
Maruzen CHI Holdings records loss

Bookstore operator Maruzen CHI Holdings recorded a loss for the first quarter ended April 30, in the aftermath of the recent Japanese disasters.The retailer said that although book sales were strong during the period, overall financial performance was affected by the Tohoku earthquake.The company recorded a net loss of ¥439m (£3.3m) compared with net profit of ¥827m (£6.1m) for the first quarter of 2009.
Matt Davies

Chief executive, Pets at Home
Melissa Potter

Chief executive, Clarks
Mervyn King

Governor, Bank of England
Michael Gutman

Managing director, UK and Europe, Westfield
Michael Sacher

Michael Sacher Chief executive, Mungo & Maud
Michael Ward

Managing director, Harrods
Mike Coupe

Group commercial director, Sainsbury’s
Mike Shearwood

Chief executive, Aurora Fashions
Moss Bros like-for-likes up 13.4% as it disposes of Cecil Gee

Menswear retailer Moss Bros like-for-likes surged 13.4% in the 20 weeks to June 18.
Moss Bros sells Gee but sticks with Savoy

Menswear group Moss Bros insists it will remain committed to its formal menswear chain Savoy Taylors Guild after disposing of its Cecil Gee chain for £1.7m to JD Sports Fashion.
Mothercare to open in Iraq

Maternity retailer Mothercare is to open in Iraq this year.
N Brown reshuffles Figleaves leadership team

N Brown, the home shopping group which owns lingerie etailer Figleaves, will not replace the role of chief executive vacated by Julia Reynolds and has reshuffled its senior management team to lead the business.
New entries
Nick Robertson

Chief executive, Asos
Nick Robertson spells out his OBE

Asos chief executive Nick Robertson hasn’t let his OBE, awarded as part of the Queen’s Birthday Honours, go to his head.
Ocado fights back with London ad drive

Etail grocer Ocado has kicked off a marketing campaign of its own just a week after Waitrose launched an advertising drive in London.
Office Depot unveils first new small format store

US
Online grocery in London

With Waitrose set to launch a full online offer within the M25, we look at what this means for Ocado
Online sales soar 18% year-on-year as £5.3bn spent in May

Sales online grew 18% year-on-year in May as £5.3bn was spent on the web.
Paul Loft

Managing director, Homebase
Paul McGowan

Chief executive, Hilco
Peter Cowgill

Executive chairman, JD Sports Fashion
Peter Fitzgerald

Director, Google UK Google
Peter Marks

Chief executive, Co-operative Group
Peter Williams

Managing director, Jack Wills
Pick n Pay to face competition from Walmart

Pick n Pay chairman Gareth Ackerman has said the grocery retailer is ready to face competition from Walmart once it enters South Africa. “We have modified our business to deal with the challenges,” he said.After exiting Australia, Ackerman confirmed that Pick n Pay will now focus expansion exclusively on markets in Sub-Saharan Africa. The company expects to open three to four more stores in Zambia and to ent
Private equity firms enter Jane Norman rescue talks

Private equity firms Sun Capital Partners and Better Capital are understood to be the latest potential buyers to enter rescue talks with struggling womenswear chain Jane Norman.
Protesters win review over Tesco Stokes Croft store

Campaigners protesting against the Tesco store in Stokes Croft have won the right to have the granting of planning permission for the shop reviewed.
Ray Kelvin

Founder, Ted Baker
Ray’s royal suit is barking mad

Ted Baker founder Ray Kelvin was dressed for the occasion when he picked up his CBE for services to fashion at Buckingham Palace this week.
Read up and smell the coffee

The news last Friday that Starbucks took a £10m hit in the UK last year from the collapse of the Borders bookshop chain offers a piquant reflection on the ongoing transformation of our high streets from retail strips of independent and multiple stores (with banks, and estate agents aplenty) into elongated food courts.
Republic rethinks store target as online picks up

Fashion chain Republic has revised its long-term store growth target in response to the “changing nature of the customer” that now flocks to the internet to buy clothes.
Retail sales slip as consumers feel the pinch

Retail sales slipped in recent weeks, marking the first time in a year when sales have not shown growth.
Retail sales values up, but volumes flat

The value of retail sales excluding petrol in May were up 2.4% on the previous year but flat in volume terms.
Retail Week Power List 2011: A-Z

The complete 2011 Retail Week Power List, in alphabetical order
Retail Week Power List: 1-100

The complete 2011 Retail Week Power List
Richard Baker

Operating partner, Advent International
Richard Hyman

Chief retail adviser, Deloitte
Richard Jones

Commercial director for non-food, Tesco
Richard Kirk

Chief executive, Peacocks
Richard Pennycook

Finance director, Morrisons
Rob Templeman

Chairman, British Retail Consortium
Sainsbury's like-for-likes up 1.9%, but warned of tough outlook

Sainsbury’s has reported like-for-like sales in its first quarter excluding petrol up 1.9% in the 12 weeks to June 11, and warned the market remains very competitive reflecting the challenging economic backdrop.
Sainsbury's strengthens online team with two appointments

Sainsbury’s has hired former Ocado head of retail Jon Rudoe to strengthen is multichannel team.
Sally Elliott

Retail partner, Korn Ferry Whitehead Mann
Schuh sold to US retailer in £125m deal

Footwear retailer Schuh has been acquired by US-based retail group Genesco for a total of £125m.
Scottish retail sales worst since 1999

Scottish total retail sales declined 1.1% in May, making it the worst decline since the survey began in 1999.
Simon Fox

Chief executive, HMV
Simon Wolfson

Chief executive, Next
Skillsmart Retail

Retail is the largest private sector employer in the UK, with 3 million employees, 286,680 outlets and producing a turnover of £315bn.
Solid year for Dixons, but balance sheet takes a hit

Dixons has announced a 6% fall in underlying profits for the year to 30 April, and warned of a “challenging” economic backdrop.
Stefano Pessina

Executive chairman, Alliance Boots
Stephen Robertson

Director-general, British Retail Consortium
Stephen Sunnucks

International president, Gap
Steve Lewis

Chief executive, Majestic Wine
Stuart Mitchell

Chief executive, Wilkinson
Sue Shipley

Head of retail practice, Odgers Berndtson
Superdrug returns to profit in 2010

Superdrug has returned to profit in the year to December 25, 2010, by improving margins and reducing operating costs.
SuperGroup chief allays investor worry

Fashion retailer SuperGroup sought to reassure investors at an analysts day on Monday
SuperGroup reports business 'on track' and confirms Regent Street opening

Fashion retailer SuperGroup reported that retail sales have improved in the last three weeks and are running overall at about the same level as in the fourth quarter, when they rose 39%.
SuperGroup seeks to rally investor support

SuperGroup, the young fashion business, met with analysts yesterday to allay investor concerns that its Superdry brand has become overexposed.
Tata Consultancy Services

As the way consumers shop and interact with retailers shifts - on the web, via their smartphone, on social networks and in store - value conscious shoppers have emerged with more information at their fingertips and new tools at their disposal.
Ted Baker sales soar ahead of expectations

Premium fashion retailer Ted Baker has beaten analysts’ expectations, posting a 15.2% rise in group revenue for the 19 weeks to June 11.
Ten secrets of a happy supplier marriage

Relationships between retailers and suppliers are always sensitive and when difficult times are jeopardising the chance of harmony, it could be time for a little marriage guidance. Charlotte Hardie suggests 10 ways to lay the foundations for a long and happy partnership
Terry Duddy

Chief executive, Home Retail Group
Tesco kicks off Back to School campaign

Tesco is gearing up for back to school in September with the launch of a one-price-fits-all school uniform priced at £4.50.
Tesco launches Wimbledon strawberries and cream sarnie

Tesco is celebrating the start of tennis tournament Wimbledon with the launch of a strawberries and cream sandwich.
Tesco needs to ‘explain’ UK strategy

Tesco was scheduled to host analysts on a trip to eastern Europe at the time of publication, but broker MF Global warned that the grocer should devote more time to telling the City how it will fix the UK business.
Tesco reports subdued UK sales, but international holds up

Tesco has reported UK like-for-like sales excluding petrol and VAT down 0.1% in its first quarter to May 28, reflecting the subdued market.
Tesco shareholders urged to cut "excessive" pay

Tesco investors have been urged to vote against the grocer’s remuneration report by shareholder advisory group Pirc.
The public will still believe that Primark exploits workers

The news of the BBC Trust’s apology to Primark over fabricated footage in the Panorama programme about child labour in the retailer’s supply chain gave rise to some heated debate among the Verdict analysts - as happened more widely.
Theo Paphitis

Founder, Boux Avenue
Tim Steiner

Co-founder, Ocado
Tony DeNunzio

Non-executive chairman, Pets at Home
US Supreme Court throws out major suit

The US Supreme Court has thrown out a major employment discrimination class-action suit against Walmart that sought billions of dollars on behalf of about 1.5 million female workers. It signalled it wanted job bias disputes handled in the workplace and not the courts. The court did not decide whether Walmart had discriminated against women, only that it could not proceed as a class.Separately, Walmart’s chie
Vast contrast typifies results across retail

Food and general retailers alike lagged a flattish market as updates and sector data showed sharply divergent performances from store groups.
Vince Cable

Business Secretary
Voucher specialist Park Group pre-tax profits soar

Christmas hamper and voucher specialist Park Group’s pre-tax profit soared 33% to £7m in its financial year ending 31 March.
What it’s like to work at Hallett Retail

The inside view according to HR director Jacqui Margolis
WHSmith earnings ‘not threatened by e-books’

Fears about the impact of the growing popularity of e-books on bookseller and stationer WHSmith are overplayed and the retailer is undervalued, according to broker Oriel Securities.
Will Adderley

Executive deputy chairman, Dunelm

Retail WeekJune 24 2011

Retail Week
June 24 2011