All articles by Planet Retail – Page 7
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News
Walmart has 'worst sales start to a month in seven years'
Walmart has reportedly had the worst sales start to a month in seven years, according to a leaked internal email obtained by Bloomberg.The email, from the company’s vice-president of finance and logistics Jerry Murray, reported that month-to-date sales were “a total disaster”.Possible reasons for the poor performance from the retailer ...
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Electronics retailer Darty issues profit warning
Electronics retailer Darty has issued a warning on its full-year profits.The retailer said if conditions continue, “adjusted profit before tax for the year to April 30 is unlikely to meet the lower end of expectations”. Darty’s total revenue in the third quarter to January 31 fell 2.5%, and like-for-like sales ...
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Department store group Karstadt publishes 2011 figures
Department store group Karstadt has - 14 months after the end of the reporting period - published its figures for the year from October 1, 2010 to September 30, 2011.The retailer reported that sales fell 3.2% to E3.23bn (£2.79bn), resulting in a net loss of E20.8m (£18m).
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Woolworths reports group sales increase
Food and clothing retailer Woolworths said group sales increased 18% to R16.7bn (£1.21bn) in its first half to December 23, 2012.The retailer also said that operating profit was up 20.6% to R1.7bn (£123.6m). Profit before tax increased 21% to R1.8bn (£130.9m).
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Tensions continue between Carrefour and Turkish partner Sabanci Holdings
Tensions continue between French retailer Carrefour and its Turkish partner Sabanci Holdings over their joint venture.There is an ongoing argument over the valuation of the partnership’s property. Valuing the store network is a challenge, given the prime locations of some outlets, especially in Istanbul.The newspaper Ekonomik Ayrinti estimates the estate’s ...
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Discount store Aldi Süd to open numerous Australian stores
German discount store chain Aldi Süd has revealed plans to open up to 110 shops in Australia, 40 to 50 of which will be located in south Australia and 50 to 60 in the west of the country.Aldi said it was committed to the expansion, but that it would take ...
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Rewe Group to extend Austrian division
German grocer Rewe Group’s international division and petrol station operator BP are to extend their co-operation in Austria.The companies will roll out the Merkur Inside forecourt store model to about 80 BP petrol stations across the country, adding three to four new outlets every month by the end of 2014. ...
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Grocery retailer Spar posts rise in total group sales
Grocery retailer Spar posted total group sales up 3.5% to E12.58bn (£10.84bn) in its 2012 financial year, from E12.15bn (£10.47bn) in 2011.Domestic sales, excluding sport and leisure retailer Hervis, rose 3.8 % to E5.56bn (£4.79bn).Sales at Aspiag (Austria Spar International AG) in Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Italy and Slovenia, were ...
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Sales increase at organic grocer Whole Foods Market
Sales at organic grocer Whole Foods Market in the first quarter were up 14% to $3.9bn (£2.5bn), and like-for-like sales rose 7.2%.EBITDA rose 19% to $337m (£217.8m) and net income advanced 24% to $146m (£94.4m).Co-chief executive officer Walter Robb said that a record 10 stores opened during the quarter, and ...
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Walmart begins testing self-scanning technology
Walmart has begun testing self-scanning using shoppers’ smartphones at 40 stores in Denver, Colorado.Customers can download the Scan & Go app to their phones, and then scan products in-store. Once their shop is complete, they select ‘done shopping’ on the app. A QR code is created and shoppers are prompted ...
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CVS purchases pharmacy chain Drogaria Onofre
US retailer CVS has purchased 44-store pharmacy chain Drogaria Onofre.CVS chief executive Larry Merlo said: “We view Brazil as an attractive market given that healthcare and pharmacy are expected to grow double digits for the next decade. It’s still a highly fragmented market, so we see nice opportunity to grow ...
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Argentine government request retailers keep prices steady
Leading retailers including Carrefour, Cencosud, Walmart, Coto and La Anónima have agreed to keep prices steady for two months until April 1, following a request from the Argentine government.The International Monetary Fund recently censured Argentina for issuing inaccurate economic data. Analysts believe inflation is about 25%, more than twice the ...
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Amazon to introduce virtual currency
Amazon is to introduce a virtual currency in May, Amazon Coins, to make it easier for Kindle Fire customers to buy apps, games and in-app items. It will also help developers monetise its Appstore for Android and increase the number of apps available.Amazon said it plans to give customers tens ...
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Spar International to return to India
Spar International plans to return to India by the year-end. Managing director Gordon Campbell said the retailer is in talks with a number of regional chains to sign licensing agreements.He said India is a crucial market for Spar and the company is seeking multiple partners for different regions.“India will be ...
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Zara's Inditex Trent posts first half profits
Zara’s Indian business, Inditex Trent, has posted profit in two of the three years it has been in the market. In the first half of 2012, Inditex in India made profits of INR383m (£4.5m) and INR225m (£2.66m) for the previous two financial years, documents filed with the registrar of companies ...
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Temasek Holdings reveals plans to acquire stake in Matahari
Temasek Holdings has revealed plans to acquire a stake in Matahari, operator of Hypermart. Temasek will indirectly buy a 26.1% stake worth $300m (£191.4m) via controlling shareholder Multipolar.The deal, if concluded, would make Temasek one of the major shareholders in Matahari. Private equity firm CVC Partners has hired CIMB, Morgan ...
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Galeries Lafayette to open first Chinese store
Galeries Lafayette is to open its first Chinese store in the Xidan commercial district of Beijing in September. It will occupy six floors and cover 516,000 sq ft.Beijing Galeries Lafayette managing director Shen Lang said the store will offer young Chinese shoppers “quality, innovation and uniqueness”.
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Ahold to turn convenience store banner into separate division
Ahold is to turn its convenience store banner AH to Go into a separate division. AH to Go was formerly managed as part of Ahold’s domestic Albert Heijn operation, alongside Albert Heijn supermarkets and AH XL superstores.Through the restructuring, the retailer aims to be better positioned to react to AH ...
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Decathlon to open 25 stores in China
Decathlon plans to open 25 stores in China this year, and aims to have 150 in the country by 2015. In Guangzhou, the retailer expects to have 20 stores within two years. At present, it has 56 shops in China.Decathlon recently opened its third store in Guangzhou, Guangdong province. Sited ...
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Fast Retailing to open 10 Uniqlo stores in the Philippines
Fast Retailing is opening 10 Uniqlo stores this year as it aims to build the brand in the Philippines. Four stores are expected to open in the first half of the year, one in Taguig City’s SM Aura mall.The retailer will also open stores in SM Fairview in Quezon City ...