Company Results
Inchcape have reported a 2.0% increase in sales to £6.8bn for the 12 months to 31 December 2015. Like-for-like sales increased by 3.1% while pre-tax profit stood at £312.1m for the same period.
John Lewis have reported a 4.3% decrease in sales for the week to 12 March 2016. Fashion, Home and Electricals & Home Technology sales decreased by 9.6%, 2.4% and 0.2%, respectively.
Marshall Motor Group have reported 13.5% increase in turnover to £1.2bn for the 12 months to 31 December 2015. Profit before tax stood at £15.8m for the same period. (Source: AM Online)
Concha y Toro has praised new figures that show Casillero del Diablo has grown sales by one-fifth in the past year. (Source: Just Drinks)
Ocado have reported a 15.3% increase in gross group sales to £312.4m for the 12 weeks to 21 February 2016. Gross retail sales increased by 13.8% to £286.7m for the same period.
French Connection have reported an 8.0% decrease in revenue to £164.2m for the 12 months to 31 January 2016. UK like-for-like sales declined by 6.4% while Group wholesale revenue declined by 4.5% for the same period.
Sainsbury’s have reported a 0.5% increase in retail sales (inc. fuel) for the 12 weeks to 12 March 2016. Like-for-like retail sales (inc. fuel) decreased by 0.4% for the same period.
Ted Baker have reported a 17.7% increase in group sales to £456.2m for the 52 weeks to 30 January 2016. UK and Europe retail sales increased by 8.9% to £252.5m while E-commerce sales increased by 45.8% to £53.5m. Group profit before tax stood at £58.7m for the same period.
Waitrose have reported a 3.0% decrease in sales (excluding petrol) for the week to 12 March 2016.
The lull following Mother’s Day and ahead of the Easter holiday break has led to a dramatic fall in LFL sales for lifestyle retailers with figures of -8.63%. Gift retailers led the decline as they transitioned into Easter selling mode this week leaving consumers to wait for the next big sales push.
After the combination of soft spring line launches and an early Mother’s Day boosted LFL sales last week, this week has seen a significant decline in LFL sales with figures of -7.56%. Footwear and LFL sales amongst the high street retailers led the decline. Retailers have slowly begun TV and media advertising for spring lines perhaps leaving consumers underwhelmed by the High Street offering. In addition, more savvy consumers may be waiting for the upcoming Easter holiday as retailers often undertake moderate discounting during the period. Generally footfall on the High Street remains poor with consumers in the east of England and Wales experiencing the sharpest year-on-year declines in footfall.
Following a strong start to the month, homeware retailers have seen LFL sales plummet to -7.90 as retailers reported sharp drops in LFL sales. Again the lull ahead of spring/Easter promotional activity suggest consumers are in a holding pattern as they await new lines and discounting.
Non-store like-for-like sales were at the lowest point of 2016 thus far with a LFL figure of +9.89 off of a strong base in 2015. The result will be a disappointment to retailers after strong online results week-on-week since mid-December 2015. Fashion and gift retailers in particular led the significant decline, demonstrating that the online channel can feel the same impact as bricks and mortar.
Clothing, Footwear & Accessories
French Connection have appointed Lee Williams as their new Group Finance Director, with effect from 04 April 2016. (Source: Company Press Release)
Harrods have announced that their Managing Director, Michael Ward, have decided to step down from the role by summer 2016. (Source: Drapers)
Ron Dorff have announced plans to open their first UK store at 5 Earlham Street in London’s Seven Dials by April 2016. (Source: Retail Times)
Electrical & Entertainment
Amazon UK have announced that their Managing Director, Christopher North, have decided to step down from the role. (Source: The Telegraph)
The Entertainer have announced plans to open a new 2,800 sq. ft. store in Haywards Heath store in West Sussex by 02 April 2016. (Source: Retail Bulletin)
Maplin have announced plans to launch price reduction initiatives across products in-store and online to boost customer loyalty. (Source: Retail Week)
WH Smith have opened four new stores at the T1 International terminal at Australia’s Sydney Airport. (Source: Retail Bulletin)
Food & Drink
Asda have announced plans to cut 500 jobs in stores and 250 at their head office in Leeds, as a part of their project renewal strategy. (Source: The Guardian)
Gruppo Campari confirms US$760m Marnier-Lapostolle takeover. (Source: Just Drinks)
The Co-operative have launched ‘ParcelShop’ facility in partnership with Hermes that enables customers to send as well as receive and return online purchases in convenience stores. (Source: Retail Times)
The UK is to introduce a sugar tax on soft drinks as governments increasingly target obesity with fiscal measures. (Source: Just Drinks)
Sainsbury’s have opened a 753 sq. ft. micro store in Richmond, Surrey, as a part of their strategy to open micro stores at over 1,000 locations. (Source: The Herald)
Diageo has added to the portfolio of the Zacapa rum range with a Travel Retail-exclusive iteration.
Waitrose have launched ‘scan as you shop’ mobile app that enables the customers to scan product barcodes on their phones for an easy checkout experience. The retailer has also opened a new store in High Wycombe. (Source: Company Press Release)
Household
Go Outdoors have announced plans to open three new megastores and cycling concessions within their existing 53 shops before the end of 2016. (Source: Verdict)
Privet Capital have announced plans to put furniture retailer, Lombok, up for sale. (Source: Retail Week)
Poundworld have announced plans to open 10 new stores in Scotland over next six months. (Source: Verdict)
Screwfix have announced plans to conduct trial for two-hour delivery slots for some of their London customers. (Source: Retail Week)
Smiggle have announced plans to open their first store in Aberdeen at the Bon Accord & St Nicholas by June 2016. (Source: Company Press Release)
Waitrose have launched their first customer magazine dedicated entirely to gardening. (Source: Company Press Release)
Courtesy of ‘Barclays‘
Tagged: Amazon, Diageo, French Connection, Gruppo Campari, Harrods, Ron Dorff, Smiggle, Waitrose