Primark owner shares halted after virus sales warning March 16, 2020 Shares in Primark owner Associated British Foods (ABF) were suspended for an hour this morning after the firm warned store closures would hit sales. The retail conglomerate’s shares were halted after falling sharply, which the London Stock Exchange said was due to an erroneous trade. Shares were down roughly 12.5 per cent when trading was [...]
Sign of the times: Tinned gin in and fruit pies out of UK inflation basket March 16, 2020 Self-tanning products, gin in a tin, reusable mugs and gluten-free cereals have been added to the basket of goods used to calculate inflation as Brits go eco-friendly and health-conscious. Meanwhile, frozen imported legs of lamb, fruit pies and frozen chicken breasts have been chucked in the bin to better reflect consumers’ changing tastes. The Office [...]
B&Q owner Kingfisher’s shares dive on European store closures March 16, 2020 Shares in B&Q owner Kingfisher plunged this morning after the DIY retailer warned that sales were expected to take a hit as stores closed across Europe due to the outbreak of coronavirus. The firm’s share price dropped more than 19 per cent after it was forced to shutter 221 of its Castorama and Brico Depot [...]
Halfords closes its cycling businesses as it pivots to online March 16, 2020 Halfords has announced the closure of two of its cycling businesses as it focuses its attention on its online operations. The retailer is closing the operations of Cycle Republic and the Boardman Performance Centre following a strategic review of the group’s cycling businesses. Halfords said it was closing the low-returning and stock intensive business next [...]
UK distillery numbers jump as craft gin popularity booms March 16, 2020 The number of distilleries in the UK has surged as craft gin continues to grow in popularity, according to the latest research. Distilleries jumped 20 per cent to 246 over the last year, up from 205 the previous year, as the UK gin industry toasted a nine per cent increase in export sales to £672m [...]
Retail footfall jumps as UK coronavirus cases rise March 16, 2020 Retail footfall spiked at the end of last month as consumers rushed to the shops to stock up due to the spread of coronavirus in the UK. Retail footfall in February was down two per cent year on year due to several storms during the month. However, the final week of the month saw a [...]
Coronavirus: Hospitality firms on the brink of collapse as footfall dives March 15, 2020 Struggling hospitality firms could be nearing the brink of collapse due to a dive in footfall across London’s pubs and restaurants this weekend as punters stayed home to avoid the coronavirus outbreak. Hospitality companies are preparing to make redundancies as soon as this week, as visitors to London’s restaurants and bars fell 39 per cent [...]
Nike closes US and European stores amid coronavirus outbreak March 15, 2020 US sports giant Nike has announced it will close all of its shops in the US, western Europe, and several other countries in an effort to protect staff and customers from coronavirus. Shops will be closed from tomorrow until at least 27 March, Nike said, including in Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Nike said its [...]
Coronavirus: Supermarkets urge customers to stop stockpiling March 15, 2020 UK supermarkets have called on the UK public to stop stockpiling in response to coronavirus as fears mount that some people could be left without essential products. In an open letter to customers, the country’s biggest food retailers, including Sainsbury’s, Tesco Asda and Morrisons, called on consumers to “be considerate in the way they shop” [...]
Apple shuts stores across the world amid coronavirus fears March 14, 2020 Apple is to close all its retail stores outside of China for two weeks in an effort to contain the coronavirus outbreak. Chief executive Tim Cook announced last night that the company would be taking the steps across the rest of the world to minimise the risk of transmission. It comes just a day after [...]