Foyles reports flat Christmas January 3, 2013 FOYLES yesterday posted flat sales over Christmas after a weak performance at its flagship Charing Cross Road branch was offset by strong trading at Westfield Stratford and online. The bookseller said while the sales period between Christmas and New Year proved “exceptionally strong”, its overall performance was dragged down by weaker trading between 1 December [...]
On the rack January 9, 2013 MARKS & Spencer was hit by a worse-than-expected drop in general merchandise sales over the Christmas quarter, the retailer was forced to reveal last night after figures were leaked after trading hours. Britain’s biggest clothing retailer said like-for-like sales at UK stores open for more than a year fell 1.8 per cent in the 13 [...]
Wetherspoon costs increase January 16, 2013 JD WETHERSPOON outpaced rival operators during Christmas, the pub chain reported yesterday, with like-for-like sales rising eight per cent over the festive period. However, a surprising hit to profit margins spooked City investors. The company, which runs over 800 pubs, said margins were around 8.2 per cent, which is 1.1 percentage points lower than last year, due [...]
Hobbs reports surge in sales at Christmas January 14, 2013 HOBBS, the upmarket womenswear chain, enjoyed a surge in sales over the Christmas trading period, boosted by a record online trading. The chain said total sales rose 16.4 per cent in the 10 weeks to 5 January, driven by a 60 per cent jump in online sales. That compared with a six per cent rise [...]
Christmas cheer raises spirits at Greene King January 14, 2013 RECORD numbers of people flocked to Greene King pubs over Christmas as the company ramped up efforts to bring in festive diners. The pub owner and brewer revealed yesterday that like-for-like trading in its establishments was up 2.8 per cent in the six weeks to 6 January, while pub sales were up 6.8 per cent [...]
Best of the Brokers February 11, 2013 GALLIFORD TRY Panmure Gordon has raised its target price for Galliford Try from 770p to 800p and maintained a “hold” rating on the stock. The housebuilder and construction firm is set to report half-year results this month. Panmure said it expects these will show stable year-on-year sales rates. The broker said as a result it [...]
House of Fraser Basks in bumper Christmas January 7, 2013 HOUSE OF FRASER has become the latest retailer to boast of a bumper Christmas, with like-for-like sales up 6.3 per cent in the period. Following hot on the heels of rival John Lewis, the department store group said in a trading statement yesterday that its stores performed well while online sales rose a record 48 [...]
Fuller’s improves at Christmas after watered-down summer January 24, 2013 CUSTOMERS flocked to Fuller’s pubs over Christmas, as the landlord and brewer reported a 4.5 per cent like-for-like sales rise during the festive period in its core business. After declining sales for much of the year, improved trading in the nine weeks to 19 January has pushed Fuller’s to a 2.6 per cent rise in [...]
US retail enjoys welcome shot in the arm from Christmas 2012 January 15, 2013 THE US enjoyed a healthy climb in retail sales during the all-important December period, official data revealed yesterday. Retail and food services sales in December were $415.7bn (£258.4bn), the Commerce Department said, up 4.7 per cent on the year, and up 0.5 per cent on the month – even correcting for seasonal variations. The entire Christmas lead-up [...]
Retailers fight to win custom over Christmas January 7, 2013 SIGNS of a gloomy Christmas are piling up for British retailers, as two sets of research out today suggest that wary customers kept a close eye on their spending during December. A survey of retailers by accountancy firm BDO points to a “good if not exceptional” Christmas, with like-for-like sales up 1.93 per cent on [...]