Retail news and archive

NRF report: holiday sales grow 4.1 percent, driven by consumer spending surge

Data released by the National Retail Federation (NRF) and CNBC Retail Monitor indicates that the 2025 holiday season achieved record spending levels, aligning with the upper end of industry forecasts. Total holiday sales from November 1 through December 31 grew 4.1 percent, meeting the NRF projection of a 3.7 percent to 4.2 percent increase to...

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Retail

Why high street fashion must stop competing on convenience and start creating meaning

Luxury fashion brands have long understood that shopping is more than a transaction. They excel at blending global prestige with local nuance, creating bespoke environments that reflect local values and aesthetics. These stores feel rooted in place, with a distinctiveness of place that makes them desirable. Written by Luke Bell, strategy...

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Business|ANALYSIS

Has the post-fast fashion era already begun? Five models reinventing profitability in textiles

The wave of insolvencies sweeping through French textile retail marks the end of an economic model based primarily on volume. This is characterised by mass store closures, with nearly 3,000 mid-market shops shutting in five years, and a cumulative increase in raw material costs estimated at over 70 percent. The model also relied on customer...

Retail

US holiday spending increases 4.2 percent in the run up to Christmas

Although 2025 has been a difficult year for many retailers, one thing doesn’t appear to have changed much - consumers ‘appetite for holiday shopping. Preliminary data from Visa indicates that overall holiday retail spending grew 4.2 percent year over year across all payment types, including cash and checks. The data, taken from the global...

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Retail

Close to 9 in 10 consumers plan to shop before Christmas

With the final countdown for the 2025 holiday shopping season set to begin, this week is likely to be a real success for retailers, with nearly nine in 10 American consumers planning to shop in the two weeks leading up to Christmas, according to new data from ICSC. The organization's 2025 Super Saturday Survey, conducted online from December 10...

Retail

Free People to relocate its London flagship store

Lifestyle brand Free People is set to relocate its flagship store on Regent Street to Argyll Street, in line with its wider retail strategy for the UK. The current flagship store on Regent Street will continue operating as normal until December 24, 2025, before closing in preparation for the move. The new location will open sometime in spring...

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Fashion |Opinion

Fashion prediction 2026: Between caution and course correction

If 2025 was the year fashion learned to live with uncertainty, 2026 is shaping up to be the year it decides what to do with it. Many of the pressures that defined the past 18 months will not magically disappear on January 1st. Tariff uncertainty remains a structural concern, particularly as trade tensions between major economic blocs continue to...

Retail

Christopher King opens flapship store in Palm Beach, Florida

Luxury lifestyle brand Christopher King has opened its debut flagship store on Worth Avenue in Palm Beach, Florida. The new 2,500 square foot store’s opening, located at 201 Worth Avenue, is a significant milestone for the emerging brand as it aims to solidify its presence among global names such as Chanel, Ferragamo, and Tiffany & Co. Interior...

Retail

Paris/64 opens its first international store in SoHo, New York City

Spanish accessories brand Paris/64 is set to open its first international store in New York this month. Located in the heart of SoHo, at 465 Broadway, the opening underlines a key milestone in the brand’s retail strategy. With the US market accounting for 35 percent of the brand’s global revenue, the store's opening underscores strong consumer...

Retail

Asos opens 'Winter Wonderland' pop-up in SoHo, NYC

Global online retailer Asos is hosting a special winter pop-up in New York City to promote a curated edit of its festive collection. Running from December 5 to December 21, the ‘Winter Wonderland’ pop-up at 182 Spring Street in SoHo includes pieces from the Asos Design, Arrange, Asos Collective, and the relaunched Topshop and Topman brands. Asos...

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Retail|In Pictures

Calvin Klein opens new flagship store in SoHo, New York City

American fashion brand Calvin Klein, a subsidiary of PVH Corp., has opened its latest global flagship store in SoHo, New York City. Officially opening its doors on December 9, the flagship sees the brand return to its roots and expand its presence in one of the US’s main fashion hubs, as Calvin Klein continues to roll out its retail expansion...

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Retail

Hyper-local, hyper-physical, hyper-engaging: Retail’s next chapter

If 2025 has taught us anything, it’s that retail has shed its old skin. The store is no longer just a place to buy something, it’s a canvas, a stage, a laboratory, and a playground all at once. The smartest spaces this year were treated like ecosystems, where every touchpoint became part of a narrative designed to capture attention, emotion, and...