Opinion – Page 339
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Opinion
VAT cut is not optional
It’s been a good week to bury bad news. So retailers ought to be grateful that on the day Barack Obama was inaugurated, a curious statistic was tucked away at the back of the ONS’s inflation report.
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OpinionObama’s an example to us all
he presidential campaign is an inspirational model for any business that wants to touch people
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Opinion
John Richards: Think it's bad? You've seen nothing yet
Plan for lower sales in 2009 and 2010 and you won’t suffer too many unpleasant shocks. The severity of the financial crunch and the excesses that led to it mean that the adjustment process must not only be painful but protracted.
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Opinion
Electricals war is yet to be won
There’s little sign of a surge for electricals retailers this year.
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Opinion
Obama's 'new era of responsibility' comes to retail
Who would have thought that JJB's suspended chief executive Chris Ronnie would be one of the first symbols of “the new era of responsibility” outlined by newly elected President Barack Obama?
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Opinion
Retail event cancellation a blow for IT
In some bad news for the retail technology industry, it has been announced that next week’s Retail Business Show exhibition will not be taking place.
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Opinion
We live in uncertain times
The year has started with something of an uneasy lull in property circles. With most but not all retailers having reported their Christmas sales, it’s obvious that the last month has brought some mixed fortunes.
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Opinion
Retail can and will survive this recession
So that’s it. Credit crunch Christmas 2008 is over, the decorations are back in their boxes and the administrations came as fast as new year resolutions fell by the wayside.
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Opinion
Economies are always cyclical
Retailers are finally learning that a long-term view is still important in times of recession.
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Opinion
Primark: good housekeeping
Hoover the floor, change the sheets, clean the windows. All of these activities come under the umbrella term “housekeeping” and are what most people do a little of from time to time. It’s also a word used in retailing to indicate that the floors have indeed been polished, the carpets ...
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Opinion
Don’t discount Tesco’s success
Tesco has posted its worst Christmas performance since the recession of the early 1990s – evidence that as the downturn bites the UK’s top grocer is losing its touch and has been knocked by rivals.
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Opinion
A new era for grocery chiefs
As Co-op's merger with Somerfield draws near, chief executive Peter Marks should look at how his competitors' businesses are run to emerge as a grocery favourite.
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Opinion
Pre-pack abuse needs to end
Retailers face many injustices, some real, others perceived. But they don’t come much bigger than this. One of your biggest rivals – which has been in administration and then bought out – has a store on a major high street. And you’re paying their rent.
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Opinion
Primark: too close to home
Primark’s stellar first-quarter trading results have been somewhat overshadowed this week by the revelation that one of its suppliers has allegedly employed illegal immigrants in sweatshop conditions in Manchester.
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Opinion
Pre-pack exploitations are damaging retail property
Going bust used to be a big deal. The consequences were serious and far reaching, and for the individuals involved it meant curtains, at least in the short term.
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Opinion
Accounts an ongoing concern for retailers
For listed companies, the combination of scrutiny and disclosure obligations potentially makes life very difficult
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Opinion
M&S was right to spend on stores
There was a time, not very long ago, when Marks & Spencer store interiors were frequently described as “Stalinist”. The inference was that while the stock might have been OK, the store design department had been virtually non-existent and the shops had been preserved in aspic from some point in ...
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Opinion
NRF: Recession creates new rules of retailing
National Retail Federation president and chief executive Tracy Mullin opened the organisation's 98th convention in New York on Sunday with a blunt message to businesses trying to ride out the recession: they need to get real to the new rules of retailing.
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OpinionEngine room of Britain’s economy
Retailers generate jobs and property, so why isn’t that recognised by the media or Government?
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Opinion
Grocers are bucking the jobs gloom
As Retail Week launches its Backing UK Retail campaign, grocers including Sainsbury's, Asda, Tesco and Morrisons are likely to play a huge part in staff recruitment.