Primark lifts profit forecast after store reopenings boost sales July 1, 2021 Primark has hiked its profit forecast for the full year after the easing of lockdown restrictions drove a sharp rise in sales for the third quarter. Parent company Associated British Foods (ABF) said profit at the budget fashion chain would be roughly in line with last year — up from previous guidance of “somewhat lower”. [...]
Asos bags record profit as pandemic continues to drive sales April 8, 2021 Asos’ profit has soared to record levels as the online fashion retailer has continued to benefit from the boom in demand for online shopping during the pandemic. The ecommerce giant reported this morning that adjusted profit before tax – not including acquisition costs – hit £112.9m in the six months ended 28 February, a £82.8m [...]
DEBATE: Will the coronavirus outbreak have a long-term impact on the Chinese economy? February 4, 2020 Will the coronavirus outbreak have a long-term impact on the Chinese economy? Emma Wall, head of investment analysis at Hargreaves Lansdown, says YES. Gross domestic product is split into three sectors which drive growth: agricultural, industrial, and services. Agriculture, which makes up seven per cent of China’s GDP, has already taken a significant hit in [...]
Reiss gets royal boost as luxury retailer defies high street gloom to post sales rise April 21, 2019 Upmarket fashion retailer Reiss has bucked the downward trend on the high street, posting double-digit sales growth in its full-year results. Read more: Retail sales jump higher than expected in March The figures Like-for-like sales rose 13.2 per cent in the year to the beginning of February. Total sales were up 8.3 per cent to [...]
Cake Box eyes 52 new stores ahead of expected record revenue April 12, 2021 Cake Box is expecting to deliver a strong performance for the year ending 31 March 2021, despite ongoing coronavirus restrictions leaving many retailers struggling. In a market update today the specialist dessert retailer revealed it was currently holding franchisee deposits for 52 sites across the country. Cake Box opened 17 new stores in the second [...]
Poundland owner to create 13,000 jobs as it eyes online retail expansion July 23, 2021 The Pepco Group, which owns Poundland, has tabled plans to create 13,000 new jobs across Europe over the next three years. The discount group’s boss Andy Bond told Reuters that it is betting on shoppers flocking to less expensive stores amid pandemic-induced inflation. Unlike most retailers over the pandemic, the discount chain group has not [...]
Brexit friction should spark new ideas for retail exports January 23, 2021 Many retailers received a welcome boost during the Covid-19 crisis with a rise in online orders from international markets, but with exports to EU member states facing teething problems in the form of higher costs and processing delays, now’s the time for retailers to broaden their reach and tap into new markets further afield. Research [...]
Some 300 million extra square feet of warehouse space needed in Europe to support e-commerce boom June 22, 2021 Nearly 300 million square feet’s worth of warehouse space in Europe will need to be found to cope with the e-commerce boom expected in the coming years. E-commerce sales across Europe are expected to increase by $298bn from 2020 to 2025, requiring thousands more industrial warehouses and distribution spaces to meet the growing demand, according [...]
Morrisons takeover could trigger breakup, analysts warn July 31, 2021 Analysts have warned that British supermarket chain Morrisons could be broken up if it is taken over by buyout firms. Analysts at Bernstein said they “struggle to see” how Morrisons’ assets would not be stripped if the takeover proceeds at the current or a higher offer price. Read more: Morrisons: Singapore’s wealth fund GIC joins [...]
Q&A: why are so many investors still ignoring the UK stock market? October 27, 2021 Q: Are UK shares cheap because they’re “old economy” businesses in the banking, oil and tobacco sectors? Bill Casey: When we speak to management teams of UK-listed businesses, many are pulling their hair out, complaining their shares are lowly “rated” compared to US and European-listed peers. They run good quality businesses which we don’t think have [...]