Category Archives: Retail industry

Superdrug to add 25 stores as demand for weight loss drugs soars

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Demand for beauty products by gen Alpha customer base also behind retailer’s expansion after tough times

An increase in demand for weight loss drugs, including Mounjaro and Wegovy, as well as demand among its generation Alpha customer base for beauty products is driving expansion at Superdrug.

The retailer plans to add 25 more stores to its 800-plus strong chain this year as well as extending existing outlets, despite troubles across the high street that have led to the closure of hundreds of stores at its rival Boots and downsizing at chains from Poundland to River Island.

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Clothing prices rising in US as Trump tariffs kick in, H&M boss says

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Daniel Ervér cites ‘fast-moving situation’ as US administration has changed rules on several occasions

Clothing prices are beginning to rise in the US as Donald Trump’s tariffs on imported goods start to have an effect, according to the boss of H&M, one of the world’s biggest fashion retailers.

Daniel Ervér, the chief executive of the Swedish retailer, said: “In the US, we are starting to see some competitors increasing prices. Different competitors are acting in different ways. Some more aggressively and some more cautiously.”

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‘Not an attractive place to shop’: how Poundland lost its appeal to shoppers

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Budget retailer had a pre-tax loss of more than £51m last year and is struggling to lure back customers amid stiff competition from rivals

“It’s not actually that cheap any more. It’s kind of lost its appeal because everything is not a pound.”

Samantha, a shopper outside Poundland’s Luton retail park outlet who is heading off to B&M to find some better deals, sums up the feelings of many of her fellow bargain hunters and a central problem facing the new owner of the budget retailer.

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Cheaper imported chicken and beef increasingly seen in UK supermarkets

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Grocers turning to Australia, Poland and Uruguay for meat, prompting claim they are undermining British farmers

Cheap chicken and beef from Australia, Poland and Uruguay is on the rise on UK supermarket shelves, according to the National Farmers’ Union, as supermarkets look for money-saving options.

The NFU regularly monitors supermarket shelves and notes that Morrisons is now selling raw chicken from Poland in its poultry aisle. Chicken in Poland is generally produced to different standards from those in the UK, and is cheaper as a result. Morrisons requires that for its UK chicken, poultry must be kept at a maximum stocking density of 30kg/m2, giving the chickens more space to roam. In Poland, this is up to 39kg/m2.

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Sports Direct pricing practices ‘may be breaking the law’, Which? says

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Consumer group makes claims of ‘some questionable and dodgy pricing tactics’ on retailer’s website

Sports Direct could be breaking the law by misleading shoppers into thinking they are getting a good deal, a consumer body has claimed, after it looked at prices of items ranging from trainers to hoodies.

Which? said it had reported the retailer to the Competition and Markets Authority after uncovering what it claimed were “some questionable and dodgy pricing tactics” on its website.

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Shein accused of ‘shaming’ customers into buying more than they can afford

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Consumer watchdogs accuse Chinese fashion firm of ‘dark’ practices in formal complaint to European Commission

Consumer watchdogs from 21 countries have filed a formal complaint to EU authorities about alleged “dark” practices by the Chinese fast fashion firm Shein including the “shaming” of customers into buying more than they can afford.

The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) has submitted a 29-page dossier to the European Commission citing multiple examples of “dark patterns”, or deceptive techniques designed to encourage purchases.

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Sweet dreams: dessert parlours help to revive UK’s high streets

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Market thought to be worth more than £500m as diners seek cheaper alternatives to the pub or a meal out

Dessert cafes and ice-cream parlours are hoping to play a role in a revival of UK high streets and the night-time economy, as people seek an alternative to going to the pub or an expensive meal out.

Their number has soared by almost 700 in the UK in the past decade, according to analysts at Green Street, formerly the Local Data Company, with outlets in places from Aberdeen to Plymouth.

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Asda unlikely to see growth before year end at earliest, says supermarket boss

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Sales at UK’s third largest supermarket fell 3.1% in four months to April, as rival Aldi announces big expansion

Asda is unlikely to see growth before the end of this year at the earliest, the supermarket’s chair, Allan Leighton, has said, as sales continue to fall despite price cuts and more stock on its shelves.

Meanwhile, Aldi, which is closing the market share gap with Asda, put further pressure on its rival by announcing significant expansion plans across the UK.

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Shein turns to Hong Kong for flotation as London attempt stalls, reports say

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Fast-fashion retailer struggling to gain go-ahead from Chinese regulators for UK listing

Shein is reportedly aiming to list on the Hong Kong stock exchange as the online fast-fashion retailer struggles to gain the go-ahead from Chinese regulators for a flotation in London.

The company, which was founded in China where the majority of its suppliers are based but now has its headquarters in Singapore, is aiming to file a draft prospectus with Hong Kong’s stock exchange in the coming weeks, according to Reuters.

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Target sales fall sharply in first quarter as customers worry about tariffs

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Retailer warns sales will slip for all of 2025 as customers pull back spending amid fears over tariffs and economy

Sales at Target fell more than expected in the first quarter, and the retailer warned they will slip for all of 2025 year as its customers, worried over the impact of tariffs and the economy, pull back on spending.

Target also said that customer boycotts have also done some damage during the latest quarter. The company scaled back many diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives in January after they came under attack by conservative activists and the White House. Target’s retreat created another backlash, with more customers angered by the retailer’s reduction of LGBTQ+-themed merchandise for Pride month in June of 2023.

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Rising goods prices could delay UK interest rate cuts, says Bank policymaker

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Bank of England’s Catherine Mann wary of firms looking to rebuild profit margins after a squeeze

Businesses will need to show they are keeping a lid on prices before there can be further interest rate cuts, according to the Bank of England interest rate-setter Catherine Mann.

In a warning to retailers and consumer goods companies to resist pushing up prices by more than the increase in their costs, Mann said she was wary of firms looking to rebuild their profit margins after a squeeze in recent years.

“I need to see the loss of pricing power, I need to see that firms are starting to be much more moderate in setting their prices,” she said.

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UK food shops report ‘massive’ rise in pensioner shoplifting

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Kingdom Services boss says retailers seeing ‘different sort of shoplifter’ with more theft by people ‘who just can’t afford food’

Food retailers have seen a “massive” increase in pensioner shoplifters over the last year, according to a leading store security firm, amid the rising cost of living.

John Nussbaum, director of service for retail at Kingdom Services Group, has said his staff were seeing a “different sort of shoplifter now” as the cost of living “pushes people to something they’ve never done before”.

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From snail slime to salmon sperm: the K-beauty boom hits UK high streets

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South Korean skincare retailers want to capitalise on viral sales of beauty ranges by opening stores across the UK

Korean beauty products are moving from phone screens to UK high streets as social media drives sales of skincare with the help of eye-catching ingredients such as snail slime and salmon sperm.

Retailers are looking to capitalise on the TikTok and Instagram trend for skincare and makeup ranges from South Korea – known as K-beauty – by opening physical stores and launching brands in a push to get consumers to pick up products that havegone viral online.

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UK Ikea boss backs calls to pedestrianise Oxford Street as flagship store opens

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New outlet due to welcome shoppers on Thursday regarded as key to helping revive famous London thoroughfare

The UK boss of Ikea has backed calls to pedestrianise Oxford Street as the world’s largest furniture retailer finally opens its delayed store in London’s prime shopping destination.

The Swedish company’s three-floor shop in the building that used to be Topshop’s former flagship store, with a mix of meatballs, lampshades and kitchen design assistance, opens on Thursday, 18 months later than planned.

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Primark owner’s shares drop as sales fall amid Trump tariff fears

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Company says consumer confidence could deteriorate further as countries face risk of recession

Shares in the owner of Primark fell after the budget clothing chain posted a sharp drop in UK sales and lost market share, as the company warned that consumer confidence was likely to worsen further amid Donald Trump’s trade wars.

Associated British Foods (ABF), which also owns a sugar business and food brands such as Ryvita and Kingsmill, said several countries could slide into recession as a result of US trade policy.

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Adidas warns Trump tariffs will put up US shoe prices

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Company had strong first quarter but says it cannot raise outlook for this year owing to tariffs uncertainty

Adidas has said the price of its popular trainers, including the Samba and Campus models, is likely to rise as a result of Donald Trump’s tariffs.

The German group said the uncertainty around US import tariffs had prevented it from raising its outlook for sales and profit this year despite reporting strong first-quarter results.

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M&S betting on customer patience as cyber-attack threatens to ruin 2025’s strong start

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Fashion revival and warm weather had boosted the retailer – but the attack has halted website sales

Marks & Spencer was enjoying a strong start to 2025 thanks to a fashion revival and the warm spring weather. That has now been seriously undermined as the retailer scrambles to deal with disruption caused by a massive cyber-attack it first revealed a week ago.

At a time when M&S – alongside most big retailers – are pushing more automation on its customers and workers, industry insiders say the retailer’s staff have been forced to return to pens, paper and clipboards to check stock in stores as internal systems have been put on hold.

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M&S pauses deliveries of some food items to Ocado after cyber-attack

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Hack has wiped more than £500m off Marks & Spencer’s stock market value in the past week

Marks & Spencer has been forced to pause deliveries of some packaged food items to the online grocery site Ocado as the high street stalwart continues to battle the consequences of a cyber-attack that began a week ago.

The latest issue is understood to affect a small number of items listed on Ocado, which is co-owned by M&S, which halted all orders through its M&S.com website and apps on Friday. M&S did not confirm the number of items affected but said it had worked with Ocado and its suppliers “to minimise any disruption to the small proportion of the range delivered through our network to Ocado”.

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M&S cyber-attack: when will orders be back, and is my data at risk?

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Marks & Spencer has halted orders on its website and apps, giving customers a refund for those placed after Wednesday

The cyber-attack at Marks & Spencer is continuing to cause chaos for shoppers, with no clarity yet as to when the retailer’s systems will be fully back up and running.

Website orders remain on hold for the fourth day in a row, and those affected also include customers waiting to collect orders or wanting to spend or buy M&S gift cards, as well as users of the retailer’s Sparks customer reward scheme.

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‘Welcome green shoots’: warm March weather gives 1.1% lift to UK retail sales

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Spring sunshine boosted spending on gardening, DIY and food products, but households are still ‘prudently budgeting’ as bills rise

Warm weather in March helped give a lift to retailers despite a late Easter, with sales of gardening, DIY, food, and health and beauty products getting a boost from the spring sunshine.

Purchases for Mother’s Day also helped retail sales climb 1.1% last month, according to a British Retail Consortium-KPMG survey, keeping pace with February despite trading against a much stronger period a year before and a downturn in visitor numbers on high streets and in retail parks as more sales shifted online.

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