Suppliers back quarterly tests for horsemeat February 18, 2013 ENVIRONMENT minister Owen Paterson last night said food retailers will conduct tests for horse- meat in processed beef products every three months, in an attempt to restore consumer confidence in the industry. “There was absolute determination in the industry to restore confidence in their products, and I’m pleased to say we look forward to meeting [...]
Aldi hitting the mainstream as customers seek value January 8, 2013 THIS time last year poor results at Tesco shocked investors and the grocery sector, although followers of YouGov’s BrandIndex and this column would have been aware of their problems a month earlier. With the all-important Christmas season now behind us I’ve taken a look back at 2012 to see what the big customer perception stories [...]
Greencore warns UK market showing little or no growth January 29, 2013 FOOD group Greencore yesterday said a “challenging UK food market” has resulted in flat like-for-like sales in the first quarter of the year. The company, which makes prepared meals and sandwiches for retailers such as Tesco and Asda, said sales at its convenience food division rose 2.5 per cent to £285.8m in the 13 weeks [...]
Tesco and Sainsbury’s maintain share after a festive dead-heat January 15, 2013 BRITAIN’S biggest retailer Tesco and third-place grocer Sainsbury’s tied in the battle for sales growth in the key Christmas period, according to data published yesterday. Market researcher Kantar Worldpanel said Tesco and Sainsbury’s both posted identical gross sales growth rates of 3.9 per cent in the six weeks ending 6 January, with market shares unchanged [...]
Mothercare UK boss to exit in team reshuffle January 30, 2013 MOTHERCARE’S UK boss is to leave the baby products retailer as part of a management shake-up to stem falling sales at its troubled UK arm. The retailer said yesterday that Mike Logue, who moved to Mothercare from Asda in late 2011, is to step down next month after the role was made redundant. The restructure [...]
Mixed mining shares weigh on FTSE February 15, 2013 The blue chip index edged down in early deals after a mixed performance from headline mining shares. Anglo American was the biggest riser, adding more than three per cent in early deals, despite it posting a sharp drop in 2012 earnings as it was hit by last month’s $4bn write-down on Brazilian project Minas Rio. [...]
Walmart eyes Turkish group December 12, 2012 WALMART, the American retail giant which owns Asda in the UK, is is understood to be eyeing a takeover bid for Turkish supermarket group, Migros Ticaret. The retailer has been in talks with private equity group BC Partners about acquiring its 80 per cent stake in the Turkish chain. A source close to Walmart told [...]
Retailer Republic poised to fall into administration February 12, 2013 REPUBLIC, the youth fashion retailer, is poised to become the latest high street name to collapse into administration, putting 1,000 jobs and 121 stores at risk. Ernst & Young has been lined up as administrators and the appointment is expected to be confirmed this morning. The group’s demise marks the latest in a string of [...]
Sainsbury’s takes the lead at Christmas January 8, 2013 SAINSBURY posted the highest sales growth of the so called big four grocers in the run-up to Christmas and was the only one to grow market share, data revealed yesterday. Figures from Kantar Worldpanel showed Britain’s grocery market grew 3.2 per cent in the 12 weeks to 23 December, with the strongest growth at the [...]
Fashion chain Republic enters administration February 13, 2013 BRITAIN’S already fragile high street was dealt a fresh blow yesterday after fashion chain Republic collapsed into administration. Ernst & Young, the business advisory firm, has been appointed as administrator and 150 staff at its Leeds headquarters were immediately made redundant. The retailer, which sells youth fashion brands including Jack Jones and SoulCal, runs 121 [...]