Table of Contents
UK Retail Sales
-
- Key points
- Retail sales
-
- Figure 8: Retail sales trends, January 2019 – May 2020
- BRC vs ONS
-
- Figure 9: UK retail sales y/y growth, BRC vs ONS, January 2018 – May 2020
- Inflation
-
- Figure 10: Annual % change in the consumer price index for selected product groups, April 2019 - May 2020
- Inflation and wages
-
- Figure 11: Real wages growth: Wages growth vs inflation, January 2016 – May 2020
- Consumer confidence
-
- Figure 12: Mintel Financial confidence tracker, January 2018 – May 2020
- Looking forward
Sector Focus – Clothing Retailing
-
- What we have seen
- Clothing sales take a nosedive in April
-
- Figure 13: Growth in store based and online clothing sales, year on year, January 2019- May 2020
- Footfall takes a hit as stores are closed
-
- Figure 14: Reasons for buying new clothes, August 2019
- Consumers intend to spend less on clothing in the next month
-
- Figure 15: Percentage of consumers who said they intend to spend more, about the same or less in next month on clothing and accessories, 28th May 2020- 3rd June 2020
- Consumer worry over the impact of COVID-19 on household income
-
- Figure 16: How consumers expect COVID-19 to impact household income, 28th May 2020- 3rd June 2020
Launch Activity and Innovations
-
- UK: Aldi offers customers ‘greater flexibility’ in new tie-up with Deliveroo
- UK: Tesco to use 3D imaging technology to manage customer numbers in stores
- UK: Instagram launches ‘Fashion Week 2020 Playbook’ to help retailers create digital catwalks
Headlines for the Month
-
- Co-ops
- Grocers
- Clothing retailing
- Footwear retailing
- Multi-sector retailing
- Department stores
- DIY retailing
- Furniture retailing
- Homewares retailing
- Online shopping
- Pets and pet products retailing
- Shopping centres
- Economy
News Analysis – Food and Drink
-
- Bakers
- UK: Greggs reveals UK expansion plans and aims to reopen 800 stores this month
- UK: Pret to renegotiate rents to reflect ‘new retail environment’ post COVID-19
- Co-ops
- UK: Co-op
- …expands robot delivery service as demand doubles
- …teams up with personalised same-day delivery service Buymie
- Convenience stores
- UK: Costcutter reports on ‘one of its best-ever years’
- Grocers
- UK: Aldi rolls out ‘automated traffic light system’ across UK store estate
- UK: Asda sales increase 2.3% but is partially offset by reduced demand for George clothing
- UK: Lidl
- …launches chatbox to inform customers when it is safest to shop
- …launches online collection lockers
- UK: Morrisons
- …Q1 results up despite ‘volatile’ trading conditions
- …extends its faster payment scheme to its suppliers
- …introduces ‘speedy’ shopping queues for small basket shoppers
- …opens first standalone clothing and homewares stores
- …reopens pizza counters for customers
News Analysis – Clothing and Footwear
-
- Clothing retailing
- UK: British fashion designers collaborate to launch sustainable face masks
- UK: Moss Bros resumes online trading after implementing ‘necessary operational changes’
- UK: Mulberry to cut down global workforce by 25%
- UK: Next to redevelop former Debenhams stores into first standalone beauty hall
- UK: New Look urges landlords to make a ‘radical’ switch to turnover-based rents
- UK: Online homeware and casualwear ‘overperforming’ at Urban Outfitters
- UK: Owner buys Monsoon Accessorize out of administration
- UK: Primark aims to reopen majority of UK stores by June 15
- UK: Quiz appoints administrators to subsidiary Kast Retail in a bid to negotiate rent terms
- UK: Reiss to reopen store estate in two waves
- UK: ‘Significant’ job cuts expected at White Stuff amid COVID-19 crisis
- UK: Ted Baker to launch fundraising effort to ‘navigate’ COVID-19 challenges
- UK: UK arm of Victoria Secret falls into administration
- Footwear retailing
- UK: Clarks to cut 900 jobs as part of its ‘Made To Last’ turnaround plan
- UK: UK arm of Aldo falls into administration
News Analysis – Mixed Goods
-
- Multi-sector retailing
- UK: B&M posts ‘exceptionally strong’ sales in grocery, DIY and gardening categories
- UK: M&S
- …reopens 49 of its in-store cafés
- …withholds bonuses for a second year
- …reports a slump in profits and reveals its ‘never the same again’ agenda
- Department stores
- UK: Debenhams
- …reveals more store closures in shopping centres after talks with Intu fail
- …to reopen 50 stores across England from June 15
- UK: Fortnum and Mason to begin phased reopening of food hall
- UK: Harrods opens outlet at Westfield to help shift excess stock
- UK: John Lewis
- …announces plans for phased reopenings
- …John Lewis Partnership donates £1.4m to local charities
- …launches virtual wellbeing workshops
News Analysis – Household Goods
-
- DIY retailing
- UK: Kingfisher reports fourfold growth in ecommerce since mid-March
- UK: Topps Tiles slides to a loss amid a ‘complex and extremely challenging trading environment’
- Furniture retailing
- UK: Furniture Village and DFS to reopen ahead of bank holiday weekend
- UK: IKEA teams up with sustainability charity to drive circular economy goals
- UK: ScS ‘well positioned’ to survive COVID-19 as it emerges from lockdown
- UK: Wren Kitchen to open 100th showroom this year as it recommences expansion plans
- Homewares retailing
- UK: Dunelm launch click and collect car delivery service to reduce COVID-19 exposure
News Analysis – Online
-
- UK: Boohoo
- …looks to future mergers and acquisitions after raising nearly £200m
- …acquires remaining minority stake in PrettyLittleThing
- …to sell DIY COVID-19 testing kits
- UK: Businesses allowed to set-up shop on Instagram and Facebook with no fee
- UK: Cox & Cox sees 64% increase in quarterly sales thanks to lockdown
- UK: Ebay helps retailers shift excess stock in new initiative
- UK: Eve Sleep sees ‘strong demand’ for its premium mattress and bedframe ranges during lockdown
- UK: Morrisons and Pret expand Amazon presence with new partnerships
- UK: N Brown sales down 25% as it fights ‘very uncertain environment’
- UK: Sainsbury’s launches bike delivery service for stores outside London
- UK: Snapchat teams up with adidas and Topshop in new ecommerce initiative
- UK: Sosandar will start selling its clothing through the John Lewis and Next websites
- UK: The Hut Group sales jump 24% driven by brand acquisitions and technology investments
News Analysis – Other Retail
-
- Health and beauty retailing
- UK: Boots to focus on digital launch for new No7 product as it reopens beauty counters
- Book and stationery retailing
- UK: Card Factory profits down as it prepares for store reopenings
- UK: Waterstones to reopen stores next week with ‘extensive’ store health and safety measures
- UK: WHSmith revenues drop 85% year-on-year in April
- Sports and leisure goods retailing
- UK: Angling Direct reports losses blaming store acquisitions and ‘exceptional winter flooding’
- UK: JD Sports creates a ‘mock-up’ store for managers to visualise new layout
- Pets and pet products retailing
- UK: Pets at Home warns profits to be materially ‘below the prior year’
- Shopping centres
- UK: Intu
- …announces safety plans for its reopened shopping centres
- …asks lenders to ‘freeze’ its debt during the ongoing COVID-19 crisis
- …to draft in KPMG as part of its contingency plan if talks with lenders fail
- UK: Property owner Landsec cuts portfolio value by £1.2bn
- UK: Westfield
- …reveals safety measures as it plans to reopen shopping centres
- …reveals new campaign ‘Working Together’ to remind visitors how to stay safe
News Analysis – Economy
-
- UK: BRC
- …reports a 19.1% decrease in sales for April
- …shop prices in May fell at their fastest rate since 2006
- …UK footfall decreased by 84.7% in April
- UK: Shops may open in June according to new COVID-19 roadmap announced by the Prime Minister
- UK: All non-essential stores to reopen from June 15 as lockdown restrictions ease
- UK: April retail sales down 18.6% amid the COVID-19 peak
- UK: Government considers suspending Sunday trading laws to help UK economy
- UK: May sees retail sales decrease by 5.9%
Back to top