All Opinion articles – Page 43
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OpinionOpinion: Can strategy hires drive transformation at M&S and John Lewis?
In the course of two days, two of retail’s biggest and most challenged names appointed strategy directors as they seek to transform themselves and tap into tomorrow’s world.
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OpinionOpinion: Julian Richer on his campaign to end zero-hours contracts
Zero-hours contracts, unless freely requested by the employee, create not just poverty but misery. They should be outlawed, and I’m backing an organisation created to do just that.
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OpinionOpinion: The government must level up apprenticeships
Take a moment to stop and look around. Retail is transforming at a rate of knots, driven by changing customer preferences and relentless technological improvement.
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OpinionOpinion: Forget about the haters – retail’s right to go green
When retailers unveil great ambitions to set new standards in sustainability, it frequently leads to an outbreak of grumpy whataboutery.
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OpinionOpinion: Want to beat Amazon? Target its weak spots
While shopping in my local Co-op before Christmas, I overheard two older customers discussing their seasonal buying. “I did all of my Christmas shopping on Amazon this year,” one said. “It’s so easy. But I do feel guilty about it.”
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OpinionMove of the Week: Ted Baker hires first chief customer officer
Hot on the heels of Mothercare’s announcement that boss Mark Newton-Jones is to move into a non-executive role this summer comes the news that Jennifer Roebuck is taking the reverse journey at Ted Baker, from non-executive director to the main leadership team.
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OpinionOpinion: If it isn’t stylish, fashion can forget sustainability
Fashion has always been a sector that leads change. What we see happening in this market often has the potential to set the pace of change across the retail industry.
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OpinionMove of the Week: Strong and adaptable Milford to head up M&S retail
Marks & Spencer has been busy in the executive jobs market of late as it looks to move ahead with its transformation programme, but its latest hire may ultimately prove to be the most significant of all.
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OpinionRichard Walker: Why sustainability can’t just be a middle-class concern
It’s hard to disagree with Sir David Attenborough’s assertions that humanity has made a “tragic, desperate mess” of the planet and that we all need to “look after the natural world”. Encouragingly, he believes that we can all “live the way you want to live – just don’t waste”.
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OpinionOpinion: Forget Asda – Coupe leaves a lasting legacy at Sainsbury’s
Once I made the mistake of telling Sainsbury’s boss Mike Coupe that I did most of my grocery shopping at Tesco.
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OpinionOpinion: Retailers must embrace the experience economy lifeline
The retail sector hasn’t exactly entered the decade on a high.
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OpinionOpinion: Don’t drown your sorrows, there are lessons to learn from pubs
As another retailer collapses into administration, this time 140-year-old department store business Beales, perhaps store chains can learn lessons from another industry that has been through the mill.
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OpinionMove of the Week: The Works have natural successor for Keaney
It’s that time of year in the jobs market when retailers that encountered difficult trading at Christmas reflect on what went wrong and what they could do better.
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OpinionOpinion: If Flybe deserves a break, why doesn’t retail?
As it emerged that regional airline Flybe was in trouble, ministers scrambled into action to keep the business flying.
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OpinionLeader: Retailers must make 2020 the year of self-help
Meet the new year, same as the old year. Many Christmas updates so far have reflected a tough end to 2019, which during its course took toughness to levels Tyson Fury would be proud of.
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OpinionOpinion: Aldi’s Leader Price takeover will step up discounter push in Europe
Compared to other parts of the food retail business, the discounters are not renowned for their track record in mergers and acquisitions.
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OpinionMove of the Week: Retail leaders must step up in brutal market
Happy New Year! Retail, as we know, never sleeps but for those of us that took some time out over the Christmas period to rest and reflect, the fast start to the new year has forced us to wake quickly from our festive slumber.
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OpinionOpinion: Christmas trading statements? Take them with a pinch of salt
In the mid-1980s, the UK retail landscape was very different. Aldi had yet to open here. Having conquered much of continental Europe, Ikea was just starting to eye Britain.
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OpinionOpinion: The 2010s, the decade when retailers started to listen
The last decade saw many famous retailers go out of business. Names that we grew up with are no longer with us.
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OpinionOpinion: Costco – the overlooked success that’s disrupting retail
When Costco Europe senior vice-president Steve Pappas retired last autumn, after overseeing the US giant’s UK operations for 13 years, his departure didn’t make the same headlines as some other senior retailers.