UK retail sales stage tentative recovery over Christmas January 22, 2021 Retail sales made a tentative recovery over the Christmas period as the UK emerged from its second national lockdown. Retail sales volumes rose 0.3 per cent in December following a 4.1 per cent fall in November as the country moved into the more relaxed tier restrictions. It is 2.7 per cent higher than February’s pre-lockdown [...]
MPs call for retail sector support following ‘dark week’ for high street December 2, 2020 MPs have called on business secretary Alok Sharma to announce what support will be given to the high street following a “dark week” for the retail sector, which has seen more than 25,000 jobs put at risk. Darren Jones MP, chair of the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Beis) Committee, asked for detail on the [...]
KPMG unit sale creates new restructuring behemoth Interpath Advisory March 4, 2021 KPMG has signed an unconditional agreement to sell its restructuring practice to Interpath Advisory, a newly-formed company backed by private equity firm HIG Europe. The sale will see 22 partners and around 528 staff currently employed in KPMG’s restructuring practice transfer to Interpath Advisory, making it the largest independent restructuring and turnaround business in the [...]
Mike Ashley ‘offers Arcadia £50m’ as crows circle retail group November 28, 2020 Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group is suggesting a £50m loan to keep Arcadia Group in business as the crows circle around the failing retail giant. Plans for the emergency loan come as Sir Philip Green’s Arcadia prepares to call in administrators, according to Sky News. It would be one of the biggest corporate victims of the [...]
Post-Christmas footfall plummets as UK shoppers avoid high street January 4, 2021 Footfall across Britain’s high streets plunged almost a quarter last week as Boxing Day sales failed to lure shoppers from their sofas, according to the latest data. The number of Brits hitting the shops fell more than 23 per cent in the seven days after Christmas compared with the week before, latest Springboard figures showed. [...]
KPMG ‘to sell’ restructuring arm in £400m deal March 2, 2021 Big four accountancy firm KPMG is set to announce the sale of its UK restructuring arm in a deal worth £400m, according to reports, as the company braces for sweeping new audit reforms. The division, which will be renamed Interpath Advisory, will automatically become the largest restructuring firm in the UK by employee count, Sky [...]
There is a generation of small businesses hungry to reinvent the high street May 4, 2021 You’d be forgiven for thinking the story of our British high streets was all about the evacuation of large retailers. Debenhams, Mothercare, Topshop, Peacocks barely scratch the surface of the total exodus which has seen 11,000 shops close in just 12 months. Many have been quick to explain that the pandemic has simply accelerated an inevitable, crumbling demise. While our high streets might look bleak right now as larger companies withdraw, small businesses are [...]
Woolard review: FCA cracks down on £2.7bn buy-now-pay-later market February 2, 2021 Interest-free buy-now-pay-later credit agreements will be regulated by the City watchdog after the market swelled to £2.7bn last year. The plans, drawn up by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), have been designed to protect consumers, after the use of buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) transactions tripled in 2020, as shoppers looked for ways to spread their money further [...]
Debenhams closure: What next for struggling retail landlords? December 1, 2020 Retail landlords are set to take a multimillion pound hit following the collapse of Debenhams and Arcadia’s fall into administration, and could struggle to fill the space left by closed flagship stores. Many property owners, which have already been impacted during the pandemic due to a spike in retail restructurings and renegotiated rents, will lose [...]
Shop prices dip as desperate retailers discount to attract customers December 2, 2020 Shop prices dipped last month as retailers discounted to encourage consumer spending in the run up to Christmas, which was disrupted by store closures during the second coronavirus lockdown. Prices fell 1.8 per cent in November compared to a 1.2 per cent decline in October, driven by a surge in discounting of non-food products such [...]