Company Results

• Asda have reported a 2.0% increase in sales for the three months to 31 December 2017. Like-for-like sales increased by 0.5% for the same period. (Source: Telegraph)

• Bunnings UK have reported a 15.7% decrease in sales to £517.0m for six months to 31 December 2017. Loss before interest and tax stood at £97.0m for the same period. (Source: Verdict)

• Shopping centre landlord Intu recorded an 18% year-on-year jump in profits in 2017 despite a slowdown in rental income growth.

• Dunelm Group have reported a 18.4% increase in sales to £545.4m for the 26 weeks to 30 December 2017. Profit before tax stood at £60.0m, while like-for-like sales stood at £469.3m for the same period.

• Hotel Chocolat Group have reported at 15.0% increase in revenue to £71.7m for the 26 weeks to 31 December 2017. Profit before tax increased by 15.0% to £12.9m for the same period.

• McColl have reported a 19.1% increase in revenue to £1.1bn for the 52 weeks to 26 November 2017. Like-for-like sales increased by 0.1% for the same period.

• Westfield London in White City recorded an annual 2017 footfall of 27.5 million visitors and sales of £1.01bn. Westfield Stratford City achieved footfall of 49.5 million and sales of £1.2bn during the period. The combined total of 77 million customer visits and sales of £2.21bn compares to combined sales of £2.2bn in 2016 on the back of 75 million customer visits. (Source: Drapers)

Lifestyle LFLs were up by a solid +2.62% this week from an already strong base of +5.61% for the same week last year. Positive LFL sales growth was evident amongst retailers of gifts, jewellery and perfume this week, with retailers of electrical goods also performing well. The positive result ended a four week negative run for lifestyle.

Fashion LFLs were down by -2.47% this week from a base of +0.74% for the same week last year. The result marked the fifth negative week in a row for in-Store fashion sales. Despite Valentine’s Day providing a boost for some retailers of lingerie, 64% of total respondents reported negative sales growth in-store this week.

Homeware LFLs were down by -4.80% this week from a robust base of +4.30% for the equivalent week last year. The result marked three negative weeks in succession for homeware, despite the boost in footfall at retail parks.

Non-store sales were up by +13.58% this week from a very strong base of +30.79% seen in the equivalent Valentine’s Day week last year. Non-store sales have still to exceed the +20% growth threshold in 2018 as consumer spending remains muted.

Clothing, Footwear & Accessories

• ASOS have announced their partnership with the British High Commission to host an event in Mauritius that seeks to implement a common framework to combat modern slavery. The event will bring together local and international stakeholders to discuss the challenges in managing labour migration and agree a common framework for improving worker protection in Mauritius and beyond. (Source: Drapers)

• Chanel have announced a partnership with Farfetch which will see Chanel investing in Farfetch and using their Augmented Retail programme for enhancing the boutique experience. (Source: Reuters)

• Clarks have opened their first permanent standalone store in Soho. The new 46 sq.m concept store is the first of its kind for the brand and offers both men’s and women’s styles, alongside in-store exclusives and limited edition colourways. (Source: Retail Focus)

• Continental Clothing, the clothing wholesaler, have launched a new product line, Fair Share, a range of T-shirts and hooded sweatshirts that carry a ring-fenced price premium that is passed directly to the garment workers in India to enhance their monthly wages. The wholesalers’ T-shirts will carry a price premium of 10p per item while each hoody will have a price premium of 54p. (Source: Company Press Release)

• Grace Cole, the online bath, body and home fragrance brand, have announced plans to launch their ranges in House of Fraser stores in the UK, Harvey Nichols Hong Kong and Stockmann stores in Europe. Key collections that will be available in House of Fraser stores across the UK from February 2018 onwards will include Grace Cole’s signature fragrances Vanilla Blush & Peony and Nectarine Blossom & Grapefruit. (Source: Retail Bulletin)

• Harvey Nichols have announced that their Fashion Buying Director, Anita Barr, has stepped down from the role on 31 January 2018. (Source: Retail Gazette)

• Jo Malone have announced plans to open a 1,281 sq.ft store at Intu Lakeside shopping centre in May 2018. The retailer is also working with Intu’s digital team to promote the brand online at Intu’s website. (Source: Retail Bulletin)

• Khadi, the Pakistani clothing brand have announced plans to open a new store in Scotland. The 2,700 sq.ft store will be the seventh Khaadi store in the UK, and will feature a bespoke layout for the Scottish debut. (Source: Hammerson Press Release)

• N Brown have announced the appointment of Matt Davies as their Chairman with immediate effect. (Source: Retail Gazette)

• Ray-ban have announced plans to open their first European standalone flagship store in London, UK. The 850 sq.ft shop will be located on Carnaby Street and it is expected to open this spring 2018. (Source: Retail Gazette)

• River Island have launched a campaign “Labels are for Clothes” seeking to raise awareness of “outdated and irrelevant” labels given to people. The “Labels are for Clothes” campaign, created in conjunction with Studio Blvd, seeks to celebrate individuality and do away with labels regarding race, sexual orientation and religion. (Source: The Independent)

• Yours Clothing have opened a new store in at Square shopping centre, Dublin, Ireland. The 4,700 sq.ft store is the retailer’s first international store in Ireland. (Source: Drapers)

• Yours Clothing have also announced plans to enter mainland Europe and open stores in Germany in 2018 as a part of their ongoing expansion strategy. (Source: Drapers)

Electrical & Entertainment

• Waterstones have announced the launch of a pop-up book store, “Like A Woman”, in partnership with publishing giant, Penguin, that will only stock books written by women. The store will open in Rivington Street, Shoreditch, East London, between 05 March 2018 and 09 March 2018. (Source: Retail Gazette)

Food & Drink

• Majestic Wine have announced that Anita Balchandani will be stepping down as a non-executive director of the company with effect from 14 March 2018, following her decision to join McKinsey as a full-time Partner. (Source: Retail Bulletin)

• Morrisons have announced the acquisition of egg supplier Chippindale Foods. The purchase is part of Morrisons’ commitment to provide customers with fresh food, and will see them work closely with farmers to ensure the welfare of hens and the quality of their eggs. (Source: Global Data)

• Waitrose have announced plans to expand the Waitrose Foundation Scheme, which currently funds projects in Ghana, Kenya and South Africa, to 12 countries by 2020. Costa Rica has become the first country outside Africa to join the Waitrose Foundation. (Source: The Grocer)

Household

• Dunelm Group have announced that their Chief Financial Officer, Keith Down, will step down from the position with effect from 15 June 2018. David Stead, Keith’s predecessor as Chief Financial Officer of Dunelm, will become Interim CFO during any transition period. (Source: Company Press Release)

• Dunelm Group have also announced the sale of their online retailer, Achica, to BrandAlley, the clothing and footwear retailer. The sale will see Achica offer clothing for the first time and it add 200 beauty, homeware and furniture brands to BrandAlley’s offering. (Source: Drapers)

• House of Fraser have announced the appointment of David Walker-Smith as their Chief Product and Trading Officer with effect from March 2018. (Source: Retail Gazette)

• House of Fraser have also announced that their Executive Director for Buying and Design, Maria Hollins, has stepped down from the business with immediate effect. (Source: Retail Gazette)

• Ikea have announced a partnership with “Big Clean Switch” campaign that promises an exclusive 100% renewable electricity tariff and aims to use a “collective switch”, a technique whereby a large group of people utilise their collecting buying power to secure a better deal from energy companies. (Source: Guardian)

Courtesy of ‘Barclays‘