Opinion – Page 337
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Opinion
A public appeal to Alistair Darling
If the Chancellor really wants to tackle the crunch he needs to help with credit insurance
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Opinion
A whirlwind 21 years of Retail Week
Retailers campaigning against rises in business rates, worries about growing consumer debt, Sainsbury’s being praised for its advertising, Marks & Spencer boldly expanding abroad. They could all be this week’s news, but in fact all are stories from the very first issue of Retail Week, published 21 years and one ...
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Opinion
Sir Philip Green's reasons to celebrate
Sir Philip Green has forecast the end of financial 'jiggery-pokery' and the return to a world of 'real operators' and 'merchants'.
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OpinionVideo and mobile will be must-haves for online retail
At yesterday’s Retail Week E-commerce Summit, Martha Lane Fox spoke enthusiastically about the role technology can play in a retail business.
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Opinion
Landlords' vote against Stylo CVA was inevitable
In the end, it was inevitable that landlords would vote resoundingly against Stylo’s CVA proposals.
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Opinion
Valentine’s Day and a last minute trip to Neuhaus
For the unromantic among you, Saturday was St Valentine’s Day and Friday was the day on which the average bloke hurried round the shops looking for a card and some tired red roses from the nearest garage.
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Opinion
Supermarkets must still be ethical in the era of frugality
The era of frugality is upon us and Tesco has revealed customer shopping patterns are changing. Can Tesco and its competitors face up to the challenge and is it a chance for an alternative like The Co-operative Group to shine?
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OpinionFurther supply chain regulation is folly
Are you aware of the high drama around Tom’s sausages? Fans have been taking a lot of interest in them as the subject of some tough supermarket negotiations on Radio 4’s The Archers.
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OpinionIrish price gulf needs to close
The weakness of the pound against the euro is causing an unhealthy disparity in prices in Ireland
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Opinion
The right to backing
As flagged in this column last autumn, potential rights issues by retailers have accelerated up the agenda.
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Opinion
For love and Liberty
The owners of luxury department store Liberty are hoping that the retailer can turn fortunes around when it unveils the results of its 'Retail Renaissance' on Saturday.
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Opinion
Staff still crucial in card crime crackdown
Another retailer faces an investigation by the Information Commissioner's Office following a data breach.
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Opinion
Another torrid week in retail property
Thursday could be quite a day. British Land’s publication of its third quarter results in the morning is not likely to be the landlord’s finest hour, especially given the turmoil property owners are finding themselves in.
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Opinion
There are some store design benefits to a downturn
One of the unexpected consequences of a recession is that things get done better and quicker. Walking the floor of French department store Printemps' Paris flagship with its chairman and chief executive (two for the price of one must be a bonus in the current climate) last week, it was ...
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Opinion
Baugurs house of cards collapses
A chill fell on the high street in more ways than one this week. As the big freeze bit, Icelandic investor Baugur filed for its home country’s equivalent of Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
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OpinionIt's time to regain your margin
I joked in a previous column that some of us might visit our shops in December, hear Wham’s Last Christmas and genuinely wonder whether it might be. I rather wish I hadn’t now.
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Opinion
Staff engagement is vital in recession
Arguments apportioning blame for the recession, whether on the inmates of Downing Street, the boardrooms of global banks or elsewhere, risk becoming academic and mired in partisanship. Only one thing is clear: no matter whose fault it is, it is our recession now.
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Opinion
Jessops needs to snap to it
Few were more surprised than the City when Jessops posted robust Christmas trading figures. For many, the sight of the specialist camera retailer edging towards the top of the festive performance league table and sitting happily near Somerfield and Waitrose was nothing short of a miracle.
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Opinion
Iceland should cut the Baugur cord
The meltdown of Icelandic investor Baugur has implications for frozen food chain Iceland, and the management need to take charge.
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Opinion
Baugur's loss is retailers' gain
The final death throes of Baugur’s retail empire are being very publicly played out, but the brands in which it has stakes should breathe a quick sigh of relief and move on with the business of retailing.