Robin Turner

As a retail expert I discussed whether John Lewis & Partners can reverse its fortunes with Drapers news editor Elizabeth Howlett: There's a long road ahead, however, with current turnaround efforts expected to take until 2027/28 to bear fruit. John Lewis's interim results, released on 14 September 2023, painted a bleak financial picture for the retailer as operating profit declined by 6% year on year to £277.1m for the 26 weeks ended 29 July. Its losses narrowed by 14% year on year to £57.3m in the period. “The question is whether John Lewis is going the same direction as Allders, Arcadia Group, Debenhams and House of Fraser,” said Andrew Pepper, partner at business advisory RESOLVE.  (I was Administrator of Allders and advised the lenders on House of Fraser. I see lots of similarities.) “They will look at their property portfolio and look at their most successful premises and their least and explore if there is a way to right size its portfolio to be smaller on footprint, but more profitable.”   Pepper also pointed out that strong staff loyalty has some disadvantages. The partnership currently has a score of 3.8 out of 5 on open company review platform Glassdoor, with 70% of the 4,451 anonymous reviews from current and former employees recommending the company to others, with many citing good wages and employee benefits. While this has been a huge benefit to John Lewis over the years, as it has likely meant lower staff turnover and a good employer brand reputation, it could also mean larger redundancy packages. “John Lewis [and Waitrose] is a lovely place to work, so they likely had good redundancy terms and had people who had worked there for 20 years. Unlike other retailers, the movement of staff through [John Lewis] likely isn't that much,” explained Pepper. “By implication that means you have lots of people working there for 10-20 years, and the [redundancy] cost will be disproportionately higher.” Read more via Drapers, below. https://lnkd.in/eD5JPxHx #ForwardWithReSolve #privateequity #debtfinancing #thebodyshop #restructuring #administration Turnaround Management Association (TMA UK) Institute of Directors (IoD) R3 Association of Business Recovery Professionals Richard Obank Retail Trust #turnaround UK Government Investments (UKGI) Foot Anstey LLP M&G plc Barings BlackRock Russell Jarvis Evelyn Partners Philip Kirkpatrick Kirkland & Ellis Close Brothers Arbuthnot Latham Bank Leumi בנק לאומי UK PNC Metro Bank (UK) Santander HSBC RESOLVE Maddox Legal Limited CMS UK Shawbrook Bank ABN AMRO Commercial Finance Praetura Commercial Finance Arnold Vos Retail Realisation Rothschild & Co #venturecapital Bantry Bay Andrew Buchanan Buchanan #retail British Land Mike Thompson MBE @CVC Capital Partners #ForwardWithReSolve #retailnews #turnaround

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Victoria Ward has written an interesting article here about the difference between a Merchandise Strategy and a Merchandise Plan and why retailers need both to succeed https://lnkd.in/eR5dPH9U

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Retail sales during October deliver ‘disappointing’ result Helen Dickinson OBE, Chief Executive of the British Retail Consortium, said: “After a painful Budget for retailers, the hope is it will be less painful for households in the immediate term and consumer appetite will pick up in time for the Black Friday sales and festive season. Retailers must now grapple with over £5bn of new costs announced by the Chancellor, including in Employer National Insurance, Business Rates and the uplift in the National Living Wage. Managing this will hold back investment and growth in the short term, while further squeezing already-low margins and risking inflation.” Linda Ellett, UK Head of Consumer, Retail & Leisure, KPMG, said: “While October’s growth didn’t continue at the levels seen for the retail sector in September, retailers will feel that there is mitigation and that they can pick up the pace again in November." https://lnkd.in/eX5TxuN6 #retail #sales #retailsales #brc

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https://lnkd.in/dv_PBfVt A great read and detailed write up into the value of Loyalty Programs and especially the Tesco Clubcard - which has always been considered (by me at least) to be one of THE elite Loyalty Programs done right! Furthermore, the creation of dunnhumby to manage, analyse and execute all the Customer & Transactions data has been nothing short of revolutionary and is still considered a benchmark for all other businesses today. #loyalty #CRM #customerdata #retention #marketing

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Cut from the techUK webinar: the future of digital ID in retail - our Chief Commercial Officer, John on creating an engaged user base 💡

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Retail 2025: 43 retail leaders reveal strategies for next year Interesting article on the business strategies of some of the UK's leading businesses. After what's been a tough 12 months or so it definitley feels like the retail sector is open for business. Link in the comments ⬇️

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Pro tips for a winning shopping season 🚀 As the Black Friday and Christmas rush approach, standing out is more competitive than ever. Our Head of Growth, Harry Calvin Williams, has worked with top retailers across the UK, navigating evolving challenges and trends to achieve standout success. Here, Harry shares his top 4 essential tips for driving success across channels this shopping season. Get ahead of the game and make more impact this season. Want deeper insights? Connect with us 👉 https://lnkd.in/dE-u335J #DigitalMarketing #BlackFriday #ShoppingSuccess #RetailTips #SearchIsEverywhere

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FLOURISH RETAIL CONSULTANCY: made to measure for your product business ❤️ Did you know, our consultancy services give you direct support from one of our specialist merchandisers so you can grow your business with confidence 🙌 Together, we’ll look at what can be done to help your business work more efficiently, drive sales and generate more profit. Rather than giving you generic advice, consultancy lets you and your business benefit from our decades of experience working with big retailers. We’ll apply everything we know to make things work brilliantly for you 🫵 ☎️ Book a FREE discovery call today! https://lnkd.in/eUeZFs6k Could merchandising be a key area that could help you grow your product business? #consultancy #retailconsultancy #merchandiser #merchandising #smallbusiness #flourishretail #fashionmerchandising #growyourbiz #growyourbusiness #profit #boostyourprofit #thesmallbusinesshandbook #discoverycall #freecall

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Danni Hewson, head of financial analysis at AJ Bell, comments on the latest UK retail sales figures. #UKRetail #Sales Read the full piece below

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What’s been happening in retail this week? 🍿 Frasers Group is attempting to install Mike Ashley as CEO of Boohoo Group PLC (of which they own 27%), as he accuses the board of having “lost its ability to manage” the online fashion company. 👕 TFG (The Foschini Group), who owns Hobbs London, WHISTLES and Phase Eight, has acquired White Stuff. Jo Jenkins, CEO of White Stuff, will continue to lead the business - exciting times for the brand! 💿 WHSmith is bringing vinyl records back to 80 high street stores across the UK. Vinyl sales rose by 11.7% in 2023, marking 16 years of consecutive growth. 🌸 The Perfume Shop has launched “Eau De-Liveroo Rider,” an on-demand service in London, Manchester, and Bristol through Deliveroo. Customers can order free 5ml samples of popular perfumes via WhatsApp, delivered within 15 minutes. 👖 Marks and Spencer is planning to add self-checkouts to changing rooms in 180 stores, helping to reduce queing times. ⚽ Digital sports platform and retailer Fanatics is set to open its first standalone store on Regent Street, London. 🔋 Tesco has agreed to purchase nearly two-thirds of the output from the £450m Cleve Hill Solar Park, covering up to 10% of its power needs over the next 15 years. CEO Ken Murphy called it a "significant step" towards Tesco’s carbon neutrality goal by 2035. The site is expected to be fully operational by 2025. 💳 SHEIN has launched its first branded credit card in partnership with Mexican fintech Stori, offering points for purchases. 🎁 Poundland & Dealz's new rewards programme, "Poundland Perks," became the top free app on the Apple and Google Play stores just one day after its nationwide launch on 16 October. 👓 Snap Inc. launched ‘Snap Street,’ a two-day event on 19-20 October in Brick Lane, London, featuring augmented reality (AR) retail experiences. Brands like Boots UK, Depop, and Cosmopolitan participated, offering AR-enhanced interactions, beauty products, fashion, and pop-up experiences. 🚚 Amazon extended its same-day delivery to over 80 UK towns and cities, including Middlesbrough, Aberdeen, and Plymouth. With demand doubling since 2023, it’s investing £580m in robotics and AI to improve fulfilment efficiency. 👟 Hotter Shoes is boosting UK manufacturing to produce one million pairs annually, increasing domestic output from 25% to 75%. WoolOvers Ltd, the new owner, has reversed plans to phase out Skelmersdale production to maintain quality and margins. 💥💥 💥 💻 Retail Economics and ZigZag Global this week launched an in-depth piece of research on the impact of returns, shining a spotlight on "serial returners. ➡ Online returns forecast to exceed £27 billion in 2024 in the UK ➡ "Serial returners" account for 11% of online shoppers that make returns, but are generating 24% of all online non-food returns, totalling £6.6bn The full report 20 page report is available to download here. It's packed full of data, visualisations and insights! https://lnkd.in/e5paRNWC

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Peter Ruis, executive director at John Lewis & Partners, kicked off Drapers Inner Circle Summit 2024 with a fireside chat about the next phase of the retailer's transformation. "Burberry is nothing without its check and John Lewis is nothing without "Never knowingly undersold". It’s about staying true to your brand." Find out more below. #JohnLewis #fashionretail #DrapersInnerCircleSummit

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We’ve set up a new store operating model for one of the fastest growing retailers in the UK. Zero capex. People & culture focused. All about the ‘why.’ Clear, consistent leadership. Our model delivers demonstrably better availability through better process, fuller stores and industry leading stock accuracy. We’ve inherited everything & haven’t needed our own IT platforms or other ‘systems’ to unlock better process. The answers are often within and we’ve worked with numerous internal folks to ‘convert’ them to the new way. Accuracy is Accuracy! We’ve approached things very differently; fixed the basics and have moved away from ‘aimlessly prescriptive retailing.’ No digital ‘eye in the sky’ checklists so we fool ourselves that things are being done. Very few lead indicators actually. The biggest progress marker? ‘Control’ That’s a hard sell to anyone. Do this & ‘You’ll be in control.’ But now? The store will all tell you that they like being in control and that process adherence is everything. No cheat codes! It’s a hell of a story and one I doubt will be replicated anywhere in the world of retail. I’d be more than happy to take you through it and understand if we could land change in your organisation too. #retail #operations #basics #commonthings

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Euros and summer discounts push July retail sales higher "British retailers saw sales tick slightly higher last month after a boost from the Euro 2024 football tournament and summer discounting, according to official figures. High street retailers said sales of football shirts, electronics such as TVs, and alcoholic drinks were all stronger amid England’s journey to the Euros final. Total retail sales volumes, which measure the quantity bought, increased by 0.5% in July, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said. It was, however, slightly below predictions, with a consensus of economists forecasting a 0.7% increase for the month." by TheIndustry.fashion & TheIndustry.beauty Office for National Statistics Liz McKeown Kris Hamer British Retail Consortium Tom Youldon McKinsey & Company #retailnews #retailsurge #retailtrends

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Have retail c-suites become too bloated? Bridgethorne’s Dahlia Stroud, senior capability consultant tells Retail Week... “It doesn’t really matter whether there are four, six or even eight roles at the top. It’s more that the dynamic between leaders with an executive team that is diverse in thinking… those at the top of an organisation set the culture, and at the heart of success lies that synergy. Shared values are imperative and ensure clear and consistent messaging is received throughout the entire organisation. This also fosters strong employee engagement and cohesive action towards strategic goals.” Size isn’t what matters. In other words, it’s what you do with it that counts. ❓ What do you think? Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/ePHUgz7p #businessconsultancy #learninganddevelopment #fmcg #foodanddrink #retail ------------------ We are Bridgethorne, specialists in training and capability, category management, interim services and consultancy. For FMCG, Retail and Health & Wellness.   For more details reach out to Bridgethorne via this link: www.bridgethorne.com

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Retail Gazette has reported Sainsbury's seven-year agreement “to help transform its shopping experience and support its Next Level Sainsbury’s business strategy”. Sainsbury’s is set to roll out its checkout technology, point-of-sale solutions and self-checkout systems to 22,500 checkouts. All in the hope to “help speed up the customer journey”. It seems clear that the industry is moving toward a quicker shopping experience and potentially even less face-to-face interaction. We're all for a speedy customer journey, but if all human elements of in-person shopping are eventually removed, what will the impact be on the future of retail? 🛒 🛍️ #reatilnews #retailAI #shoppingexperience #customerexperience #commericalinteriordesign #retailinteriordeisgn

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Today, we announced our partnership with industry leaders to build a new digital infrastructure that will make our business more customer-centric and operate more efficiently, while elevating the digital shopping experience for our customers. 🚀 Read more in the article below. Frasers Group

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New Bira podcast gives a voice to independent retailers following the general election. Bira - British Independent Retailers Association #generalelection #retail #highstreetmatters #podcast

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