Retail news and archive

BPF calls on government to extend business rates relief for vacant lots

The British Property Federation (BPF) has called on the UK government to extend the period of business rates relief for empty properties from three to 12 months as shop vacancies in the region continue to grow. Currently, owners of vacant properties have a three month exemption from business rates to allow time to upgrade and re-let stores,...

RetailFeatured

What is Unified Commerce and why is it so important for fashion retailers?

Although the term has been around for years, Unified Commerce remains somewhat of an emerging concept for many retailers. A recent survey conducted by Bain & Company global consultants, on behalf of Aptos, the retail technology solutions platform, found that the fashion industry still remains largely unprepared for it. However retailers are...

RetailFeatured

Study reveals that next gen shoppers are ready for AI, AR and robots

Global payments and shopping service Klarna released data last week that reveals how retailers will need to adapt to win customers in the future - that means investing in artificial intelligence (AI), augmented reality (AR) and robots, which according to the study “are likely to dominate the in-store and online landscape”, especially fashion...

RetailFeatured

Square's Forward program awards funding to 25 Black and Latino small businesses

Forward, the accelerator program by Square to support early-stage Black and Latino small businesses in the retail sector, received over a thousand applicants by its April 1st deadline. The majority were women-owned businesses. The inaugural program was launched in partnership with 1863 Ventures, American Express, and Social Change Fund United,...

BusinessFeatured

UK landlords Shaftesbury and Capco complete merger

West End London landlords Shaftesbury and Capital & Counties, known as Capco, have completed an all-share merger to form a new combined property group called Shaftesbury Capital. The new group has a portfolio valued at 4.9 billion pounds, with 2.9 million square feet of lettable space located in some of the most iconic parts of London’s West...

Business

SMCP's ‘Retail Lab’ academy for sales advisors launches

French luxury marketplace SMCP has officially launched its SMCP Retail Lab academy, established together with EMA SUP Paris and Institut Français de la Mode (the Paris Fashion School). The school offers students a certified training course to become an experienced sales advisor, with a programme that takes place over a year in the form of...

Retail |In Pictures

In Pictures: Schiaparelli opens its first store in London

Parisian luxury fashion house Schiaparelli announced on Tuesday the opening of a boutique within Harrods department store. This first London shop will "meet the increasing demand from British customers”, the house said in a statement sent to FashionUnited. Schiaparelli's pieces have been a fixture on almost every red carpet for several seasons...

Retail

Marks & Spencer trails in-store virtual try-on feature for Jaeger

Marks & Spencer has joined the increasing line up of retailers getting in on the virtual try-on (VTO) trend after it launched a new partnership with Zyler to introduce the experience in two of its stores. The retailer worked with VTO solutions provider Zyler on bringing the in-store feature to its Oxford Circus and Harrogate branches, where it...

Retail

Dsquared2 and Hackett to open flagships on New Bond Street

Dsquared2 and Hackett are set to open new flagships on New Bond Street as part of the real estate firm GPE’s Hanover development plan. As its sole standalone store, Dsquared2 will be launching a new London flagship, in a 4,700 square foot space covering the ground, basement and first floor areas. The location, set to open later in Q1, will stock...

Retail

Christmas footfall highest since beginning of pandemic, according to BRC

Despite a shift in consumer confidence and their move towards essentials amid a cost-of-living crisis triggered by record inflation, footfall during the peak Christmas period was reportedly the highest since the beginning of the pandemic. According to the British Retail Consortium’s Sensormatic IQ data, total UK footfall for 2022 still fell 11.8...

Retail

Beauty giant Morphe to close US stores

After weeks of online speculation by social media users, Morphe has confirmed it will be closing the doors of its US stores. The beauty giant corroborated reports on Twitter, in a post stating: “We have made the difficult decision to close all Morphe stores in the US. We are forever grateful to our store teams for their passion, talent and...

Retail

Newcastle’s Eldon Square extends opening times, reports strong consumer demand

Newcastle shopping centre Eldon Square has announced new extended trading hours for 2023 as it reports strong demand among consumers and increased visitor numbers. The North East site will be open for one extra hour per day to support retail, dining and leisure businesses in the centre. On Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday, the location will...