Table of Contents
UK Retail Sales
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- Key points
- Retail sales
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- Figure 1: Retail sales trends, January 2019-October 2020
- BRC vs ONS
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- Figure 2: UK retail sales y/y growth, BRC vs ONS, January 2018-October 2020
- Inflation
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- Figure 3: Annual % change in the consumer price index for selected product groups, January 2019 – October 2020
- Inflation and wages
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- Figure 4: Real wages growth: Wages growth vs inflation, January 2016-September 2020
- Looking forward
Sector Focus – Grocery Retailing
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- October sales increase 8.4% as Christmas buying is bough forward
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- Figure 5: All retail sales (ex-fuel), non-seasonally adjusted, January 2019-October 2020
- Accelerating growth for online grocery sales
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- Figure 6: Annual % change in all grocery retail sales and store-based online grocery retail sales
- Online grocery continues to grow and benefit from second lockdown
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- Figure 7: Consumers who have shopped more online, stocked up on groceries and used click-and-collect more, 4-11 November 2020
Launch Activity and Innovations
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- UK: Asda opens first Greggs cafe on site in East Midlands store
- UK: Next to sell Laura Ashely homewares instore and online
- UK: Sky to open network of ‘social hub’ high street stores
Headlines for the Month
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- Convenience stores
- Grocers
- Clothing retailing
- Footwear retailing
- Multi-sector retailing
- Department stores
- Furniture retailing
- Homewares retailing
- Online
- Health and beauty retailing
- Toys and games retailing
News Analysis – Food and Drink
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- Co-ops
- UK: Co-op
- ...and Waitrose announce price cuts ahead of Christmas
- ...first franchise store in Scotland
- Convenience stores
- UK: Nisa unveils new Express format
- Grocers
- UK: Aldi
- ...to extend click-and-collect service to 200 more stores ahead of Christmas
- ...reveals 900th store in Berkshire
- UK: Asda
- ...signs concession deal with The Entertainer
- ...unveils its sustainability store
- UK: Cake Box sees sales rise 12.1% as it welcomed customers back in store
- UK: Iceland sales up 22% and frozen specialist Oops opens new store in Lancashire
- UK: Sainsbury’s
- ...Double Up event returns ahead of Christmas
- ...rolls out twin tie-ups with UberEats and Deliveroo
- ...to shut Argos stores and food counters despite sales growth
- UK: Waitrose
- ...and Deliveroo to expand grocery trial to 25 shops
- ...launches first overseas website in UAE
- ...to recruit 1,850 extra staff to cope with online Christmas demand
News Analysis – Clothing and Footwear
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- Clothing retailing
- UK: Edinburgh Woollen Mill
- ...warns of ‘inevitable’ job cuts and closures as it reviews business
- ...to close over 50 stores as landlords reject proposals
- ...appoints administrator and cuts 750 jobs
- UK: Frasers Group increases stake in Mulberry to 29.7%
- UK: French Connection losses mount as sales fall 53%
- UK: Gap set to close stores across Europe
- UK: Joules posts 35% rise for online sales in trading update
- UK: Matalan sees profits drop 44% due to heavy discounting on surplus stock
- UK: Mulberry re-launches sustainable version of the Alexa bag for 50th anniversary
- UK: Next
- ...increases profit forecast following a strong third quarter
- ...Mamas & Papas extend Next concession openings
- UK: Primark
- ...calls for extended Christmas opening hours post lockdown
- ...warns of £375 million loss amid England's second national lockdown
- ...revenues down 24% due to store closures
- UK: Quiz reports 10% fall in revenue in 2019/20
- UK: Superdry’s 44.8% drop in in-store sales partially offset by 49.8% rise in online
- Footwear retailing
- UK: Clarks warns of 4,000 job losses as part of its plans to revive the business
- UK: Shoe Zone warns it could close 90 stores if business rates return
News Analysis – Mixed Goods
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- Multi-sector retailing
- UK: Flannels opens new 12,000 sq ft store in Birmingham with plans for more openings
- UK: M&S
- ...group revenue down 1.9% as clothing and home division take a hit
- ...clothing and home to remain open throughout lockdown
- ...to create 500 Christmas jobs for its ‘most digital Christmas yet’
- UK: Poundland
- ...acquires frozen food specialist Fulton Foods
- ...to extend frozen and chilled section to 40 stores
- Department stores
- UK: Debenhams
- ...gives bidders three-day deadline to make offer
- ...Mike Ashley unable to match Debenhams price and withdraws offer
- ...announces online partnership with Watchshop
- UK: John Lewis
- ...reveals new strategic vision to reach more customers
- ...given green light to transform half of Oxford Street flagship into office space
- ...to cut 1,500 head office roles
- UK: Selfridges and Royal Mail bring back post office pop-up for Christmas
News Analysis – Household Goods
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- Electrical retailing
- UK: Currys PC World and The Entertainer prolong opening hours before lockdown
- Furniture retailing
- UK: Bensons for Beds switches from Black Friday to ‘Back November’
- UK: IKEA will buy back customers old furniture in new initiative
- Homewares retailing
- UK: Dunelm
- ...and DFS forced to close under new lockdown regulations
- ...sales up 37% driven by increasing demand
News Analysis – Online
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- UK: Amazon
- ...launches Black Friday a month early
- ...launches ‘eco-friendly’ shopping platform
- UK: AO
- ...and Tesco team up to launch five shop-in-shops
- ...sales grow driven by 83% surge in sales for Germany
- UK: Asos profits grow 329% as it faced COVID-19 ‘head on’
- UK: Gear4Music raises outlook as group sales rise 42%
- UK: N Brown seeks £100m fundraise as interim profits fall
- UK: Royal Mail rolls out 72p parcel pick-up service
- UK: The Hut Group will create 500 jobs ahead of Christmas
News Analysis – Other Retail
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- Health and beauty retailing
- UK: Boots
- ...outlines plan for stores in England ahead of second lockdown
- ...to offer 12-minute coronavirus tests
- ...sales slip 29% as shoppers avoid busy high streets
- Book and stationery retailing
- UK: Stanfords launches crowdfunding scheme amid second lockdown
- UK: WHSmith travel division expected to see £70m loss due to COVID-19
- Jewellers
- UK: Aspinal of London CVA gets backed by creditors
- Toys and games retailing
- UK: Hamleys to make 60 redundancies at its Regents Street store
- UK: Specialists Geek Retreat to open 100 new stores
- Shopping centres
- UK: Intu offloads shopping centres Lakeside, Victoria and Braehead
News Analysis – Economy
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- UK: non-essential stores ordered to close in new Welsh lockdown
- UK: BRC
- ...October sales grow 5.2% year-on-year
- ...September retail sales up 6.1%
- ...fears ‘untold damage’ to the high street as second national lockdown is announced
- UK: Welsh government updates list of essential items retailers can sell during 17-day lockdown
- UK: retailers shut non-essential areas in stores following government advice
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