Category Archives: Retail industry

More than meatballs: Ikea opens its first UK standalone restaurant in London

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Diners hail ‘great price’ of dishes at Swedish furniture chain’s food outlet next door to its Hammersmith store

Its meatballs are as famous as its flatpack furniture, with a meal in one of its restaurants often the highlight of an Ikea trip.

Now shoppers can enjoy an Ikea meal without lugging around their kitchen sink – literally – as the furniture company has opened its first standalone restaurant on the UK high street in King Street in Hammersmith. Located next door to its west London city store, the space seats 75 people and serves a range of Swedish dishes.

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UK supermarkets using multibuy deals to encourage sales of meat, study finds

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Exclusive: about one in five offers involve meat and dairy and one in ten processed meat despite known health risks

Supermarkets are using multibuy promotional deals to encourage shoppers to buy meat and processed meat, despite the products being linked to a heightened risk of cancer, research reveals.

Almost one in five (18%) of multibuy offers in major British supermarkets involve meat and dairy products, and one in ten (11%) processed meat such as ham, bacon and sausages.

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EU launches action against shopping website Temu over illegal products

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Formal investigation opens amid concerns Chinese shopping website is breaching Digital Services Act

The EU has launched formal proceedings against the Chinese shopping website Temu amid concerns it is failing to halt the sale of illegal products online.

A formal investigation was opened on Thursday with the European Commission citing concerns over the platform, which is a cut-price rival to Amazon.

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Mulberry’s owner rejects increased £111m bid from Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group

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Majority owner, Challice, says it has no interest in selling shares to group that already owns 37% of luxury brand

The owner of the Mulberry fashion brand has rejected an increased £111m bid from Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group to buy the British luxury handbag maker, saying it has “no interest” in selling its shares.

Challice, a group controlled by Singaporean entrepreneur Christina Ong and her husband, Ong Beng Seng, which owns 56% of Mulberry – giving it the power to block any bid – called on Frasers to ditch plans to take over, saying it came at an “inopportune time” for the struggling brand.

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Saudi wealth fund buys 40% stake in Selfridges department store

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Thai conglomerate Central Group to co-own high-profile retailer with Saudi Public Investment Fund

Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund has bought a stake in the upmarket department store Selfridges in its latest move on a high-profile British asset.

The Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) said it had signed a deal to buy a 40% stake in the loss-making retailer for an undisclosed sum.

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Aussie classics Vegemite and Tim Tams cheaper in UK supermarkets than Australia

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Vegemite sells for 30 cents more per 100g in Australia, a salty byproduct of lower supermarket competition sure to leave a bad taste

Shoppers in the UK are paying less for Australian brands including Vegemite and Tim Tams than customers in Australia, despite the classic products being made in Australia.

A comparison of seven Australian products stocked in UK supermarkets shows they are often cheaper to buy in Britain than at Australia’s two major supermarket chains.

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Tesco boss says new workers’ rights laws must not hurt growth

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Bill is likely to include measures such as ending ‘exploitative’ zero-hours contracts and changes to sick pay

The boss of Tesco has called on the UK government to work with business to ensure new legislation to improve workers rights also increases productivity and growth as the retailer revealed better-than-expected profits.

Ken Murphy, the chief executive of the UK’s biggest supermarket, said he was keen to use a planned consultation on the wide-ranging employment rights bill, announced by the government in the king’s speech in July, to “make sure that whatever the government decides to put forward has the intended consequence of stimulating productivity and growth and protecting workers at the same time”.

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Promise of ‘glass skin’ drives surge in sales of K-beauty products in UK

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South Korean skincare brands expected to follow country’s music, film and TV exports in becoming blockbusters

We’ve had South Korean pop, film, fashion and food, and now the latest trend is K-beauty, with sales of Korean skincare brands taking off in the UK as consumers are seduced by products that promise to conjure a radiant complexion.

Britons are cutting back in other areas, but they are still chasing what the beauty industry describes as the “glass skin” look, with retailers reporting a rise in spending on high-end skincare.

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Morrisons agrees £331m property deal on extra long leases to cut debt pile

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Transaction will reportedly provide investment firm Song Capital with ground rent on 76 supermarkets for 45 years

Morrisons has raised £331m to cut its debt pile through the sale of ground leases on 76 supermarkets as part of a turnaround plan under the new chief executive, Rami Baitiéh.

If all the proceeds are used to pay down debt, Morrisons would have net debt of £3.6bn, down from as much as £8.6bn at the end of last year.

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Co-operative Group returns to profit as almost £40m lost to shoplifting

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Mutual reports half-year pre-tax profit of £58m despite soaring wage bill and rising cost of theft at retail stores

The Co-operative Group has laid bare the impact of shoplifting as it said the cost of crime in its stores soared by almost 20% to £40m in the first half of the year.

The member-owned mutual has spent £18m so far this year on measures to protect staff in its food business, including rolling out body-worn cameras and fortified kiosks.

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EU plant exporters turning backs on UK over ‘painful’ border checks, says trade group

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Trading relationships at ‘breaking point’ because of delays and costs, garden centres and nurseries warn

Exporters of plants and flowers from mainland Europe are turning their backs on supplying Britain as “painful” new Brexit border checks are putting some trading relationships at “breaking point”, garden centres and nurseries have warned.

The Horticultural Trades Association (HTA), which represents garden retailers and growers, said long-held links between British nurseries and EU suppliers were now being put under strain because of the delays and costs associated with the new border processes.

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ACCC sues Coles and Woolworths over allegations of ‘illusory’ discounts on common products

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Competition watchdog alleges supermarkets briefly increased prices on hundreds of products before placing them in discount promotions

The competition regulator is suing Coles and Woolworths over allegations they misled shoppers by engaging in “illusory” discounts on hundreds of common supermarket products.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) claimed on Monday that the major chains derived significant revenue from the sale of tens of millions of products sold through promotions that the regulator says breached consumer law.

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B&Q owner Kingfisher reports weak demand for kitchens and bathrooms

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Shares in FTSE 100-listed company rise after it reports improved full-year profit forecast

The chief executive of Kingfisher, which owns the B&Q and Screwfix chains, has said demand for kitchens and bathrooms in the UK has plateaued but overall sales are showing signs of recovery, as the retail group reported sliding half-year revenues.

Thierry Garnier said demand for big-ticket categories had remained weak, in line with the wider market, while sales of seasonal products – from garden furniture to barbecues – had improved since early July.

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Traffic to be banned from London’s Oxford Street under Sadiq Khan plan

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Mayor to be given power to overrule Westminster council, which blocked previous plan amid concerns over rerouting buses

Traffic will be banned from London’s Oxford Street under plans announced by the mayor, Sadiq Khan, using new powers from Labour to push through long-thwarted pedestrianisation of the capital’s famous shopping strip.

Khan said urgent action was needed so that the mile-long street could “once again become the leading retail destination in the world.”

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Aldi says a basket of its goods is cheaper than a year ago as it cuts prices

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Supermarket has come under pressure as rivals such as Tesco and Sainsbury’s have promised to match its prices

Aldi has said the price of a basket of its goods is lower than a year ago despite ongoing grocery inflation, as the discount chain tries to fight back against increasing pressure from rivals’ price-matching schemes.

The German-owned budget retailer said a slowdown in growth this year – sales are rising by just 0.5% compared with 16% last year – was partly caused by a decision to cut prices as big chains including Tesco and Sainsbury’s have won back customers by promising to match Aldi on key items.

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Body Shop’s remaining UK stores saved after rescue deal agreed

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British cosmetics tycoon Mike Jatania leads consortium to acquire UK’s 113 outlets and outposts in Australia and North America

The Body Shop has been rescued from administration by a consortium led by the British cosmetics tycoon Mike Jatania in a deal that will keep the ethical beauty brand’s remaining 113 UK stores trading.

Auréa, the growth capital firm founded by Jatania and former UBS, Credit Suisse and Merrill Lynch executive Paul Raphael, said it had bought all the Body Shop International’s assets, which include its UK stores and control of outposts in Australia and North America for an undisclosed sum.

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Drinking wine to 5: Dolly Parton launches prosecco and rosé range in UK

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Country music star’s ‘down to earth’ range at Asda goes head to head with Kylie for the ‘easy drinking’ top spot

Whether it’s 9 to 5, Jolene or Islands in the Stream, Dolly Parton fans are no stranger to belting out her hits with a glass of wine in hand, but now they can sip her vino, too, as the singer’s “down to earth” wine range goes on sale in the UK.

The brains behind Dolly Wines say they have bottled Parton’s “vivacious spirit and love for life” with the decision to branch out from selling albums to alcohol pitting the US country music star against the pop princess Kylie in the battle for the “easy drinking” top spot.

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Asos to charge shoppers who regularly return large amounts of goods

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Online fashion retailer writes to some customers to say they face £3.95 fee unless they keep up to £40 of order

Asos is to start charging UK shoppers who frequently return large amounts of goods a fee of £3.95 to send items back unless they keep up to £40 worth of their order.

The online fashion retailer, which until now has made free returns of unused items within 14 days an important part of its offer in Britain, has written to some shoppers saying it has updated its “fair use” policy for orders made from 8 October.

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Owner of 7-Eleven rejects $39bn takeover offer from Canadian rival

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Japanese group says Couche-Tard plan undervalues firm, but leaves door open to higher offer

The parent company of the global convenience store chain 7-Eleven has rejected a near $39bn (£29.6bn) takeover offer from a Canadian rival, arguing it “grossly undervalues” the company.

Last month, Tokyo-based Seven & i revealed that it had received a bid from Alimentation Couche-Tard setting the scene for what could be Japan’s biggest ever foreign takeover.

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M&S using AI as personalised style guru in hopes to boost sales

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Shoppers can use technology to advise them on outfit choices based on their body shape and style preferences

Marks & Spencer is using artificial intelligence to advise shoppers on their outfit choices based on their body shape and style preferences, as part of efforts to increase online sales.

The 130-year-old retailer is using the technology to personalise consumers’ online experience, and suggest items to buy.

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