All articles by Chris Brook-Carter – Page 10
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Opinion
Comment: Christmas will be the real multichannel test
The sceptics remain in the ascendancy when it comes to whether the UK can replicate the consumer feeding frenzy witnessed around Black Friday in the US.
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Analysis
Retail Week Live 2013: Retail’s big event
From omnichannel to international to property, Retail Week Live 2013 will cover the key issues in retail, with contributions from some of the industry’s biggest names.
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Opinion
Comment: Matt Davies is the man to drive Halfords’ future
Of course, it is too early to expect the arrival of new Halfords boss Matt Davies to have had a material impact on the retailer’s interim results, so he bore little responsibility for its 23% slump in first-half profits this week.
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Opinion
Comment: The real tax villains aren’t overseas retailers
Immoral, manipulative, pathetic. These were only a handful of the insults and accusations thrown by British MPs at some of the largest and (until now) most-respected international businesses operating in this country.
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Opinion
Comment: OpCapita has questions to answer over Comet's demise
Halloween was an unfortunate but fit setting for the grim tidings that Comet has fallen into administration.
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Opinion
Comment: Retailers must change to master multichannel
Multichannel retailing has been in the spotlight this week. The glare fell most prominently on Apple following news it has parted company with its retail boss John Browett.
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News
Mary Portas backs call to freeze business rates
High street campaigner Mary Portas has lent her support to the Fair Rates for Retail campaign calling for a freeze in business rates next year.
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Opinion
Comment: Argos bids farewell to past in digital shift
The much anticipated strategic review of Argos by its managing director John Walden was delivered this week from the relative comfort of a first-half performance that registered like-for-like sales growth of 0.6%.
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Opinion
Comment: Time to say enough is enough on rates burden
Retailers faced up to a grim reality this week. They now know the financial blow they will take as a consequence of the Government’s policy to link business rates to September’s RPI.
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Opinion
Comment: Davies should shift Halfords up a gear
A second-quarter rally at car and cycles specialist Halfords was given an extra shine last week with the news Matt Davies has filled the driving seat left vacant by David Wild in July.
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Opinion
Comment: Tesco UK recovery likely to accelerate
Tesco boss Philip Clarke will not have thanked the way the financial stars aligned this week to bring Tesco and Sainsbury’s results on the same day, albeit for different reporting periods.
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Opinion
Comment: Fair rates for retail will allow focus on growth
As Britain bids to restore national financial self-confidence and goes for economic growth, few industries contribute on the scale of retail.
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Opinion
Comment: Technology needs to be at the heart of retail business
As the Retail Week Technology Summit 2012 takes place in London this week, Chris Brook-Carter shares his thoughts on the importance of the sector.
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Opinion
Comment: Hamleys deal opens the door to overseas growth
This week’s acquisition of Hamleys, which famously describes itself as the “finest toy shop in the world”, paves the way for the retailer to test that claim on a truly global scale.
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Opinion
Comment: Farewell to Allders as closure looms
That the demise of one shop can command such attention in a retail landscape scarred by CVAs and large administrations is a reflection of the place Allders holds in British retailing history.
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Interview
Q&A: Next chief executive Simon Wolfson
Next boss Simon Wolfson gives his views on the current economy after the home and fashion retailer reported a rise in profit but decline in like-for-like sales in its first half.
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Opinion
Comment: M&S multichannel store is last hurrah of space race
Renewed speculation of a takeover bid for Marks & Spencer has been inevitable since it reported its worst trading performance in three years last month.
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Opinion
Comment: New appointments at BRC should make a strong team
The news today that KPMG’s Helen Dickinson has been appointed as the BRC’s new director-general will be met with surprise in some quarters – many had expected a retailer to fill the shoes of incumbent Stephen Robertson.
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Opinion
Blog: Chuggers rule OK?
So-called chuggers remain an emotive issue for retailers and the public. Estimates suggest charity street collectors raise £130m a year but their underhand and at times aggressive tactics can harm high streets.
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Opinion
Comment: Sunday trading may not be the road to retail gold
As the Olympic flag passed from London to Rio de Janeiro on Sunday and the nation began reflecting on the athletic and cultural success the Olympic Games have proven to be, attention soon turned to sustaining that momentum and building on the legacy left behind by London 2012.