Rachael N.’s Post

Good points to read

Interesting stats on "returners" 😮 ➡ Over a fifth of online non-food purchases are now returned with online returns forecasted to exceed £27 billion in 2024 in the UK ➡ Serial returners account for only 11% of online shoppers that make returns, but are generating 24% of all online non-food returns - or £6.6bn ➡ The average "serial returner" is projected to send back a staggering £1,400 worth of non-food products this year.

What’s been happening in retail this week? 📦Amazon and Asda launched parcel pickup and label-free returns across 700 UK Asda stores. Customers can combine weekly shopping with parcel services, enhancing convenience and reducing packaging waste. 👟JD Sports Fashion saw sales drop in Q3, amid “increased trading volatility” in October, warning full-year profit will now come in at the lower end of its £955m to £1.035bn guidance. Group revenues dipped 0.3% for the 13 weeks to 2 November, while UK sales were down 2.4%. 👖Levi's® Footwear & Accessories is using Amazon's Alexa devices to help consumers find the right size, currently rolled out in Germany. The interactive voice-driven questionnaire helps customers select the right fit and style of jeans without trying them on. 🌍AllSaints is expanding internationally, opening stores in London, Liverpool, Shanghai, New York, and Metzingen. What a turnaround for the brand! 🏬HMV suspended new store openings for 2025, citing increased risks and costs from the Budget. 👔Ted Baker relaunched its UK website on 15 November under new operator United Legwear & Apparel Co. (ULAC). 🎥TikTok for Business forecasts record-breaking festive sales driven by a 64% rise in UK live shopping sessions over the last 12 months, with daily sales rising 93% driven by beauty brands. 🛍️The Body Shop appointed Penny Brook as chief marketing officer and Sally Dowling as chief financial and operations officer. 🍿Frasers Group called for boohoo’s chair Mahmud Kamani to be replaced by Mike Ashley, citing governance failures, supply chain issues, and poor financial performance. 💷boohoo raised £39.3m, including £38.9m from investors, to support its turnaround after reporting a £27.4m loss for six months ending 31 August. Boohoo CEO Dan Finley announced a business review to maximise shareholder value, exploring all options. 💄REVOLUTION BEAUTY reported a £10.9m pre-tax loss for the six months to 31 August, with sales falling 20% to £72.4m. 🛒Lidl GB reported 16.9% revenue growth to £11bn for the year ending 28 February, with EBIT at £220.8m. Customer visits surged, with over 35 million more shopping trips made to its stores compared to last year, boosted by the Lidl Plus app. The retailer plans 40 new store openings next year. 💥 Boom. We're delighted to release our report on "serial returners" in partnership with ZigZag Global. The full report 20-page report is available to download here. It's packed full of data, visualisations and insights! ➡ Over a fifth of online non-food purchases are now returned with online returns forecasted to exceed £27 billion in 2024 in the UK ➡ Serial returners account for only 11% of online shoppers that make returns, but are generating 24% of all online non-food returns - or £6.6bn ➡ The average "serial returner" is projected to send back a staggering £1,400 worth of non-food products this year. Download here ⬇️ https://lnkd.in/e5paRNWC

What’s been happening in retail this week?   ·      Allan Leighton, who was chief executive of Asda from 1996 to 2000, is returning to the grocer as its executive chair to tackle its sales slump, replacing Asda’s current chair Lord Stuart Rose. ·      Zara opened a 51,000 sq ft flagship store at Birmingham’s Bullring & Grand Centrals shopping centre inside the former Debenhams department store, featuring automated collection and returns points. ·      Waitrose & Partners opened its first convenience store in six years, with its new Little Waitrose store in London’s Hampton Hill, marking its 47th Waitrose-operated convenience shop. The store features a hatch to allow delivery riders to make collections. ·      The Cotswold Company partnered with John Lewis & Partners to launch a shop-in-shop inside Peter Jones. ·      John Lewis Partnership announced a 73% YoY increase in Google searches for John Lewis Black Friday deals, following the return of the Never Knowingly Undersold price promise. ·      THG-owned LOOKFANTASTIC.COM expects its beauty AI tool to generate a spike in sales over Black Friday, which uses a quiz to determine customer preferences and recommendations for its foundations. Last year’s Black Friday saw foundation sales through the AI tool jump by 159%. ·      Frasers Group acquired South African sportswear retailer Holdsport Group for an undisclosed sum, which operates across retail, wholesale, manufacturing, distribution and ecommerce operations in South Africa and Namibia. ·      Frasers Group acquired a £3m stake in Marks Electrical Group plc, giving it a 6.4% stake while founder Mark Smithson retains a 70% controlling stake. ·      SECRET SALES acquired H&M’s digital fashion outlet Afound to expand into the Nordics. The digital outlet will be relaunched on Secret Sales’ platform in December. ·      Kingfisher plc recorded group sales were flat at £3.2bn on a constant currency basis while like-for-like sales fell 1.1% in the three months to 31 October. UK and Ireland like-for-like sales rose 0.4% (Screwfix +1.8% and TradePoint UK +4.9%). Kingfisher tightened its adjusted pre-tax profit guidance to between £510m and £540m. ·      AO sales increased 6% to £512m in the six months to 30 September, while adjusted profit before tax jumped 30% to £17m. AO upgraded its guidance for adjusted pre-tax profit to between £39m and £44m. ·      Sosandar reported sales of £16.1m in the six months to 30 September, down 27% from the same period last year, but pre-tax losses shrank 50% to £0.7m as it changed its pricing to drive more full-price sales, reducing the number of price promotions on its site by 85%. During the period, Sosandar opened its first four UK stores. This is just a selection of news this week. Sign up below for more insight ⬇️ https//lnkd.in/d-z25aM

What’s been happening in retail this week? · Tesco launched an online marketplace, integrating 9,000 third-party products into the online operation. Items span DIY, garden, homeware, pet care, and toys, all fulfilled by suppliers. · This move follows an explosion of marketplace activity with retail brands looking to monetise their customer base by offering enhanced choice from partner brands and driving retail media revenue. · SHEIN plans a £50bn IPO on the London Stock Exchange, filing a confidential prospectus with the Financial Conduct Authority. The IPO aims to raise over £1bn from new shares. Its mooted market cap of over £50bn would be bigger than Tesco, Sainsbury, Next, M&S and JD Sports combined… · N Brown Group posted adjusted profit before tax of £13.3m for the 52 weeks to March 2, 2024, an £8.4m improvement on last year in a very challenging part of the market. Their focus on profitability feeding through to some impressive results. · Asda co-owner Zuber Issa has sold his stake in the supermarket chain to co-owner TDR Capital, as the private equity firm becomes the majority owner. The deal, which will complete later this year, brings the ownership of Asda to 67.5% by TDR Capital, 22.5% by Mohsin Issa, and 10% by Walmart. · AllSaints launched its first premium childrenswear collection, "SmallSaints," in partnership with Next. The range includes 45 pieces such as jumpers, dresses, and T-shirts for children aged 4 to 13, with prices starting at £22. A second 145-piece collection is expected to arrive between July and October. · ZARA SA is expanding its live shopping broadcasts to the UK after a successful trial in China. The initiative will also roll out to Europe and the US between August and October. Zara's live shows on Douyin, TikTok’s Chinese sister site, positively impacted sales. The fashion brand aims to engage Western shoppers with this interactive format. · Frasers Group increased its stake in HUGO BOSS to £305m, now holding 2.47% in common stock and 13.92% via put options. This move comes after reducing its investment from £770m to £580m last year. · B&M Retail reported a 14% rise in statutory pre-tax profits to £498m for the year ending 25 March, driven by new store openings and strong demand. Sales increased by 10% to £5.48bn. B&M plans to open at least 45 new stores in the UK this year. · Amazon has introduced grocery deliveries to all its customers in eligible cities across the UK and launching member pricing. Customers in more than 100 towns and cities nationwide can now receive groceries delivered from its own Fresh stores, Morrisons, Co-op and Iceland. This is just a selection of news this week. Sign up below for more insight ⬇️ https://lnkd.in/d-z25aM

What’s been happening in retail this week? ·      Amazon and Asda launched parcel pickup and label-free returns across 700 UK Asda stores. Customers can combine weekly shopping with parcel services, enhancing convenience and reducing packaging waste. ·      Amazon introduced "Amazon Haul" in the US, offering goods priced at $20 (£15.70) or less to rival SHEIN and Temu. The platform features discounts, free delivery on orders over $25 (£19.60), and free returns for items above $3 (£2.36). ·      Flying Tiger Copenhagen launched a UK customer club app offering discounts of up to 20% for in-store purchases. The retailer is making it debuts in Australia on 7 December with two stores, expanding its global reach. ·      IKEA will open a 'Hus of Frakta' pop-up on Oxford Street from 28 November to March 2025, celebrating its iconic Frakta bag. The initiative precedes the highly anticipated Oxford Street store opening in 2025. ·      AllSaints is expanding internationally, opening stores in London, Liverpool, Shanghai, New York, and Metzingen. Recent launches include a 5,300 sq ft pop-up in SoHo and a sustainable store in Belmont Park Village. ·      HMV suspended new store openings for 2025, citing increased risks and costs from the Budget as Canadian owner Doug Putman criticised the fiscal environment. ·      Ted Baker relaunched its UK website on 15 November under new operator United Legwear & Apparel Co. (ULAC). Plans for European website expansion are being supported by ULAC’s expertise in global brand localisation. ·      TikTok for Business forecasts record-breaking festive sales driven by a 64% rise in UK live shopping sessions over the last 12 months, with daily sales rising 93% driven by beauty brands. ·      The Body Shop appointed Penny Brook as chief marketing officer and Sally Dowling as chief financial and operations officer. ·      Frasers Group called for boohoo’s chair Mahmud Kamani to be replaced by Mike Ashley, citing governance failures, supply chain issues, and poor financial performance. ·      boohoo raised £39.3m, including £38.9m from investors, to support its turnaround after reporting a £27.4m loss for six months ending 31 August. Boohoo CEO Dan Finley announced a business review to maximise shareholder value, exploring all options. ·      REVOLUTION BEAUTY reported a £10.9m pre-tax loss for the six months to 31 August, with sales falling 20% to £72.4m. ·      Lidl GB reported 16.9% revenue growth to £11bn for the year ending 28 February, with EBIT at £220.8m. Customer visits surged, with over 35 million more shopping trips made to its stores compared to last year, boosted by the Lidl Plus app. The retailer plans 40 new store openings next year. This is just a selection of news this week. Sign up below for more insight ⬇️ https//lnkd.in/d-z25aM

What’s been happening in retail this week? · boohoo reported group sales declined 17% YoY to £1.4bn in the year to 29 February, driven by “difficult market conditions”. The fashion retailer's pre-tax losses widened to £159.9m in the period from £90.7m last year, with gross profit falling 16% to £756m. UK sales declined by 16% to £921m, impacted by the macroeconomic environment, price investments, and changes in the sales mix due to the expansion of the Debenhams marketplace. · Zalando confirmed its full-year guidance for 2024, expecting revenue and gross merchandise volume to rise between 0% and 5% YoY, with adjusted EBIT projected between €380m (£326m) and €450m (£386m). The retailer reported a first-quarter adjusted EBIT of €28.3m (£24.3m) and a 1.3% increase in gross merchandise volume to €3.3bn (£2.8bn). Revenue reached €2.2bn (£1.9bn), down from €2.3bn (£2.0bn) in the previous year. · TALA entered its first physical retail partnership with Selfridges from 10 May across all four Selfridges locations. · JD Sports Fashion opened its first store in the Middle East at Bahrain’s Marassi Galleria Mall in collaboration with global retail partner GMG, spanning 5,422 sq ft. · Morrisons acquired 38 convenience stores from SandpiperCI on the Channel Islands, including shops already branded as Morrisons Daily. The stores, which reported a turnover of £124.5m last year, were part of a franchise agreement since 2018. The deal's terms were not disclosed, but approximately 520 SandpiperCI employees will transfer to Morrisons. · Asda launched LS Eleven Media Services in collaboration with SMG, utilising first-party customer data from Asda Rewards for enhanced retail media campaigns. · Frasers Group announced a partnership with developer AND Digital, innovation specialist Valtech and agency Lab Digital to overhaul its digital infrastructure across brands, enhance operational efficiencies and online experiences. The platform will feature hyper-personalisation and improved product discoverability. · Currys plc is partnering with Accenture and Microsoft to deliver its core cloud infrastructure and leverage the latest AI technologies. It aims to enhance operations, elevate the shopping experience and improve experiences for colleagues. · Amazon announced plans to build a £500m robotic warehouse in Northampton, projected to be fully operational by 2026. The facility, featuring three floors of robotics technology for stowing and picking customer orders, will initially create 1,400 jobs, ranging from engineers to HR, finance and IT staff. This is just a selection of news this week. Sign up below for more insight ⬇️ https://lnkd.in/d-z25aM

Here are some interesting stories from the world of retail for Monday, April 29: 📦 Tomorrow it’s the turn of Amazon to report quarterly results and analysts expect the world’s biggest online retailer to have made sales of $142 billion in the first three months of the year. 📈 The FTSE 100 is expected to be boosted as soon as next month when the Chinese online giant SHEIN announces that it has decided to float its shares in London. 👖 Urban Outfitters shoppers will have a new way to shop for secondhand clothes. The retailer is rebranding and restructuring its vintage and secondhand offerings online to make up a new program called Vintage + Remade. 🚚 Walmart has announced Ultra Late-Night Delivery, expanding its delivery hours until midnight. The service is available nationwide for orders placed by 10:30pm. Walmart's delivery will now be available from 6a, to midnight. 👞 Steve Madden’s wholesale woes are expected to be a continued factor in its upcoming first quarter results this week.  Large wholesale accounts are still cautious with their buys in the first quarter, which may affect sales in the period. 🥗 Rising food prices are sending more shoppers to ALDI USA. The German grocer keeps prices low with smaller stores, fewer staffers and a slimmer menu of product choices than bigger supermarkets. 👗 The European Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive is set to have a big impact on fashion firms, requiring them to monitor and correct their supply chains for the use of forced labor and negative environmental impacts. 🧴 Reinold Geiger, the billionaire owner of L’OCCITANE Group International, is close to making an offer to take the skin-care company private, in a deal that could value it at about $7bn including debt. 🍣 Looking for a bite at your local mall? As US malls race to reinvent themselves, they’re turning to sushi conveyor belts, craft-beer membership clubs and Korean barbecue to replace burgers and fries. 🦊 The day after 33 Foxtrot stores and two Dom's Kitchen & Market locations abruptly closed their doors, a lawsuit was filed on behalf of now-former employees. 📱 Brands on TikTok Shop face increased fees and an uncertain future. Brands are bracing themselves for when social media company will likely roll back benefits even more — all while a threat of an outright US lurks on the horizon. 🥫 Ahead of the release of Kraft Heinz's first-quarter results this Wednesday, new chief executive Carlos Abrams-Rivera talks to the Wall Street Journal about his commitment to making the company's products healthier. 🍕 Domino's is launching a promotion today that rewards customers who tip $3 or more per order with a $3 coupon good for their next order, as long as that order takes place the following week. #retail #retailnews #economy #DailyRetailNews

Here are some interesting stories from the world of retail for Tuesday, July 16: 📦 Shoppers are expected to spend a record $14 billion during this year's Prime Day, Amazon's two-day sales event. The first day of the event will drive $7.1 billion in online spending, up 11.3% year over year. 🏬 Macy's is ending discussions with Arkhouse Management and Brigade Capital Management, saying a revised offer to take the department store private remained a dicey proposition. 🏭 SEPHORA is set to open a new 746,672 sq ft distribution center in 2025 at Avon Landings Commerce Park in Indiana, marking its sixth such facility in the US. It will help enhance logistics capabilities across America's Midwest. 🕯️ Massachusetts-based Yankee Candle is cutting 100 jobs at a distribution facility in Deerfield as parent company Newell Brands looks to restructure operations after a year of flagging sales. 👖 Head-to-toe denim has become fashionable among young consumers. But the trend hasn’t done much for Levi's, the company synonymous with blue jeans, as consumers opt for cheaper or trendier styles. 🤖 AI isn’t just a hyped innovation in the tech sector; the food industry is also investing heavily in the red-hot trend. The industry is using AI to help curb high labor operating costs and reduce prices on some items. 🏥 RITE AID said Monday it is mailing letters to consumers who may have been affected by a recently uncovered hack that allowed a third party to access the personal information of some of its customers. 👔 As part of its strategy to expand its range of products and reach customers on different platforms, apparel retailer INDOCHINO is set to launch five new showrooms in US cities between mid-July and the end of September. 🫒 The UK's Ocado Group has disclosed a pre-tax loss of £153.9m for the first half of the year, despite achieving a revenue increase of 12.6% to £1.5bn compared to the previous year. 🧢 Online retailers and right-wing supporters have commodified the assassination attempt on Donald Trump at lightning speed, with products from T-shirts to trading cards bearing images of the former president. 🎓 Back-to-school spending is likely to stay flat or tick down this year as cash-strapped parents hit hard by inflation pull back on electronics purchases and prioritize value. 🚘 AutoNation, the leading car dealership chain, reported a significant impact on its second-quarter earnings due to a cyberattack on CDK Global, its dealership management system provider. 🇨🇳 Many retail shops in China are struggling with rent hikes in a stalling economy. Landlords are under pressure to cut prices or soften lease terms to retain tenants. ✂️ Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Monday that policymakers will not wait until inflation falls to 2% in order to cut interest rates. #retail #retailnews #economy #DailyRetailNews

Here are some interesting stories from the world of retail for Thursday, August 22: 🎯 Consumers are hungry for value, and the retailers feeding those cravings are getting a boost. That includes Target, which invested more in price, and received a sales boost for the second quarter, breaking a streak of declines. 👕 The TJX Companies, Inc. raised its full-year guidance on Wednesday after posting another quarter of strong sales. Sales for the second quarter rose to $13.47 billion, up from $12.76 billion a year earlier. 📉 Macy's stock fell 14% Wednesday after the department-store chain missed sales and same-store sales estimates for its fiscal second quarter and lowered its full-year guidance, citing a still-stressed consumer. 👖 At Urban Outfitters, company net sales increased 6.3% to a record $1.35bn beating $1.34bn estimates, but comparable sales across all brands were up 2%, below expectations. Shares fell on the news. 👟 Unified Commerce Group has acquired all assets for upscale sneaker brand Greats from Steve Madden. UCG also announced a strategic investment in Böhme, a Utah-based womenswear retailer. 💵 Target CEO Brian Cornell said there’s no room for price gouging in the competitive retail landscape. In an interview, he disputed campaign talking points accusing grocers of inflating prices. 🇨🇳 Online fast-fashion giant Shein has filed another lawsuit against competitor Temu, accusing the China-founded shopping platform of stealing its designs, copying its product images and engaging in other types of fraud. 🚚 Sam's Club has introduced new membership benefits aimed at enhancing the shopping experience. Plus members can now enjoy free delivery on eligible orders over $50 through the Delivery from Club service. 🏬 Foot Locker’s efforts to refresh its store footprint are continuing with the reopening of its 34th Street flagship in New York City. It called the store opening a pivotal milestone in its store fleet revamp. 🇬🇧 Waitrose & Partners's decision to invest over £1bn in opening 100 convenience stores and refurbishing existing outlets is part of a growing UK trend for supermarkets to focus on smaller stores. 🌟 Walmart said it unloaded its entire stake in JD.com, one of China’s biggest e-commerce companies, unwinding one of the largest investments in a Chinese retailer by a foreign rival. 👷🏼 The US Bureau of Labor Statistics on Wednesday revised down its estimate of total employment in March 2024 by a whopping 818,000, the largest such downgrade in 15 years. 📦 Amazon has launched a program allowing sellers using its fulfillment services to issue product refunds without customers returning the item. 🇮🇳 India's commerce minister has accused Amazon, Flipkart and other e-commerce companies of predatory pricing practices. ✂️ SEPHORA is cutting hundreds of staff in China, as part of the LVMH-owned brand's efforts to turn around a loss-making operation in the country. #retail #retailnews #economy #DailyRetailNews