Including a tale of two department stores as Selfridges and Debenhams post results.
The Source rounds up some of the key retail stories of the week.
Luxury department store Selfridges has reported an increase in profits. The business recorded an 18% lift in operating profit to £180 million in the year to January 28. Sales increased 16% to £1.6 billion during the period. The retailer stated that its investment plan had helped to fuel its full-year performance, with strong growth online. It is currently transforming its flagship London outlet, while the Birmingham and Manchester stores are also being revamped.
On the flip side, fellow department store chain Debenhams saw its full-year profits drop 44% in the year to September 2. Pre-tax profit stood at £59 million for the period, while, on an underlying basis, profit was down 16.6% to £95.2 million. Gross transaction value rose 2% to £2.95 billion. However, boss Sergio Bucher said that the changes being made as part of the Debenhams Redesigned strategy were beginning to bear fruit.
Toy retailer The Entertainer has teamed with tech consultancy Red Ant to add an AI-driven chat service to its website. Visitors to the site will be able to have a ‘live’ chat with Santa about the toys and games they would like to buy this Christmas, while Santa will also tell jokes and offer festive facts through voice and text input.
Sports Direct has acquired triathlon specialist Tri UK. It is now planning to roll out six new stores next year.
John Lewis saw its revenues drop 4.7% to £86.7 million in the week to October 21. Fashion sales were down 6.9% during the period, with the retailer attributing this to the mild weather. Home sales also fell 6.6% compared to the same week last year, while electricals and home technology dipped 0.5%.
Retailers in London’s West End are gearing up for a Christmas spending spree from international visitors. Sales in the six weeks to December 31 are expected to rise 1.5% to £2.61 billion compared to the same period last year, with forecasts from New West End Company saying till receipts will reach £51.5 million per day.
Want to read more news like this? Simply sign up to our daily digest by clicking here. You can also follow @LicensingSource on Twitter.
