Amazon and eBay: 10 out of 12 Christmas lights sold are a fire hazard December 14, 2022 Testing by consumer group, Which? revealed that 10 out of 12 Christmas lights sold on Amazon do not meet UK electrical equipment safety regulations. The consumer group tested under £15 Christmas lights sold on both eBay and Amazon, finding that most of them are dangerous for household use, and may cause a fire. Responding to [...]
Retailers blame Royal Mail strikes for Brits abandoning online shopping in the run up to Christmas January 20, 2023 Thousands of Brits appear to have abandoned online purchases following a series of strikes by Royal Mail employees, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics. Figures released by the ONS show that the proportion of online sales slipped by 0.5 per cent to 25.4 per cent in December. Retailers laid the blame on [...]
World Cup fans flock to shops to buy TV screens and football Christmas decor December 9, 2022 Football fans have upgraded their screening set-ups ahead of England v France this weekend, with sales for televisions and projectors surging. The Three Lions are set to take on their rivals on Saturday evening, with shoppers rushing to upgrade their TV sets after England made it through to the showdown. High street stalwart John Lewis [...]
Tube trips in shopping hotspots hit one million as people fall for Christmas frenzy December 7, 2022 Trips on the tube to key shopping centres have reached pre-pandemic levels, as the Elizabeth Line and Christmas rush boosts retail. More than one million entries and exits were recorded on 3 December at stations such as Oxford Circus, Knightsbridge and High Street Kensington, figures published today by Transport for London (TfL) showed. Tottenham Court [...]
‘Thousands of jobs at risk’: Bar bosses despair over fresh Christmas rail strikes December 6, 2022 Pub and bar bosses were last night left despairing over a slew of fresh strike dates, which fall over Christmas. Rail union RMT announced three more days of walk-outs on Monday night, with workers set to strike from 6pm on Christmas Eve to 6am on 27 December. Industrial action had already been planned on 13, [...]
Marston’s swings back to profit as pub chain anticipates Christmas without Covid limits December 6, 2022 Marston’s has welcomed being in the black, after trade at its pub estate recovered from the side effects of Covid-19 lockdowns this year. In results for the year to 1 October, the community pub operator posted a total profit before tax of £163.4 m, versus a loss of £171.1m the year prior. The operator of around [...]
Strike chaos: TSSA announces more railway staff will walk out ahead of Christmas December 3, 2022 Thousands more railway station staff are set to walk out this month, as union bosses and ministers held talks at Parliament yesterday. The TSSA union served notice for strike action in a further six train operating companies and Network Rail yesterday, meaning thousands more workers will walk out on 17 December. This takes the number [...]
JD Sports expects pre-tax profits to top £1bn following Christmas surge January 11, 2023 JD Sports expects to post pre-tax profits of more than £1bn for the year ending on 3 February 2023 after it recorded a Christmas sales surge. The sportswear retailer said a strong performance in the second half of 2022, driven by a surge in sales over Christmas, will see it achieve its financial goals. The [...]
Police prepare for new wave of Just Stop Oil disruption in run up to Christmas November 28, 2022 The Met Police are preparing for a month of disruption from Just Stop Oil in the run up to Christmas. The force said the environmental campaign group will launching a new wave of protests from 28 November until 14 December. This comes after more than 750 activists were arrested in October and November, with over [...]
Wilko shakes up rent payments as it eyes cashflow ahead of Christmas September 11, 2022 High street giant Wilko is shaking up its rent payments schedule in a bid to conserve cash in the run up to Christmas. The garden and home retailer told landlords that it would now unilaterally pay its quarterly rent bill in monthly instalments to manage the firm’s cashflow: heralding a difficult time moving forward for [...]