Up-to-date coverage of the latest events in UK retail.
Card Factory appoints former Tesco director as CCO
Card Factory has recruited a new chief commercial officer following the recent exit of executive commercial director Lousie Hoste.
Adam Dury, former Tesco category director of home, seasonal and design in the UK and Central Europe, will join the specialist retailer in his new role – and be a member of the executive board – on August 26.
Dury will be responsible for Card Factory’s commercial strategy including supply chain and shopping experience, as well as the ongoing development of its range of value products.
At Tesco, Dury was responsible for transforming the grocer’s home and seasonal categories by launching two new home brands, leading to a return to like-for-like sales growth and profitability in the categories.
B&M posts “record breaking” sales
B&M has posted increased sales during its first quarter which boss Simon Arora hailed as its “third consecutive record Easter trading period”.
The value retailer registered a 21.4% increase in group revenue to £967.6m during the period from March 31 to June 29.
UK like-for-likes increased 3.9% up from an increase of 1.6% for the same period last year.
M&S Dorchester next store set to close
M&S has announced its Dorchester store will be shuttering as part of its restructuring plan to close more than 100 stores by 2022.
The department store said 53 staff will be affected and they will now be involved in a consultation process.
A spokesman told the BBC: “Shopping habits are changing and we’re reshaping our store estate to meet the needs of today’s customer.”
M&S Dorchester has been open since 1936.
Huawei cuts 600 US jobs after trade clampdown
Huawei has cut more than 600 jobs at its US research unit in America after Washington put the company on a trade blacklist.
Washington added the telecoms giant to its entity list in May which bans the company from acquiring technology from US companies without government approval.
Tension between China and the US have escalated this year after both countries imposed tariffs on billions of dollars’ worth of one another’s good, according to the BBC.
‘Futurewei’ is a research subsidiary of Huawei based in California.
Alibaba.com opens platform for American trade
Alibaba is opening its online platform allowing American companies to sell its products to small businesses around the world.
American companies were previously only allowed to buy on the Alibaba.com platform but in a bid to compete with online giants Amazon and Shopify they can now sell to other businesses in the US China and elsewhere, according to CNN.