Back to basics: Sainsbury’s gradual retreat from the British high street Retail Sainsbury’s deal to sell its catalogue retailer Argos marks the latest step in the grocer’s years-long retreat from a high street conglomerate back to its core food business. The FTSE 100 supermarket giant holds a 15 per cent market share of grocery stores, second only to Tesco. But the firm once had a sprawling business [...]
Can a team of retail veterans solve Argos’ catalogue of woes? Retail The death of the Argos catalogue in 2021 after nearly half a century prompted a period of mourning for many in Britain – including the retailer’s new owner. “I used to sit around the kitchen table putting green shield stamps into books,” Richard Pennycook said on Friday, referring to the original iteration of the catalogue. [...]
Sainsbury’s to sell Argos in £120m cut-price deal Retail Sainsbury’s has said it will sell long-struggling catalogue retailer Argos for £120m, a fraction of the £1.4bn it bought it for a decade ago. The supermarket giant has struck a deal with Swift Partners – a new company led by On the Beach chairman Richard Pennycook and former Morrisons boss Trevor Strain. Their takeover will [...]
Retailers ramp up pressure on Reeves to scrap tax break for e-commerce rivals May 27, 2026 Retailers have urged Rachel Reeves to “revitalise the high street” by speeding up plans to close a tax break which they say unfairly favours Chinese e-commerce rivals. High street giants like Next, M&S and Primark have urged the Chancellor to impose a £2.60 flat fee on small parcels to rebalance a system which they say [...]
Chinese online retailer takes on Amazon March 16, 2026 Chinese retail giant JD.com has mounted a challenge to Amazon’s control of the home-delivery market with its UK launch of online shop Joybuy. The platform will offer big-name brands including Apple, Samsung and Lego and is taking on Amazon’s reputation for speedy delivery with its “Double 11” promise – meaning orders placed before 11am will [...]
Sainsbury’s could slash 300 jobs in head office shakeup February 26, 2026 Retail giant Sainsbury’s could axe up to 300 jobs as it overhauls its tech and head office teams across its supermarket and Argos operations. The grocery is restructuring its technology and data unit into one dedicated team for Argos and two for Sainsbury’s. The firm, which employs around 140,000 people, announced it would cut 3,000 [...]
Sainsbury’s shares dip despite £800m shareholder payout plan January 9, 2026 Sainsbury’s share price has dipped by over 4 per cent on Friday morning following its Q3 results, which revealed grocery sales at the FTSE 100 giant grew by over 5 per cent during the festive period. The boss of the supermarket chain said it “won grocery market share for the sixth consecutive Christmas” after grocery [...]
Argos treated like an ‘unloved child’ by Sainsbury’s December 4, 2025 Argos “is not performing to the best of its ability” and the strategy of its owner, FTSE 100 giant Sainsbury’s, has left it like an “unloved child”, according to an analyst. The future of Argos was thrust into the headlines after Sainsbury’s confirmed in September that it was in discussions to sell the retailer to Chinese e-commerce giant [...]
Argos loses more than £200m as over 2,000 jobs cut December 1, 2025 Argos lost more than £200m during its latest financial year as over it cut over 2,000 jobs. The retailer, which is owned by FTSE 100 supermarket giant Sainsbury’s, has reported a pre-tax loss of £223.2m for the 12 months to 1 March, 2025. The loss comes after Argos posted a pre-tax profit of £37.3m in [...]
Sainsbury’s FTSE 100 shares highest since 2014 after Argos talks September 15, 2025 Shares in FTSE 100 supermarket giant Sainsbury’s have surged to their highest value in more than a decade after it held brief talks to sell Argos to Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com. Sainsbury’s share price has jumped by almost five per cent in early trades this morning to 322p. The value is the company’s highest its [...]