This week's retail news 'you may have missed'......
At mdj2, we’re passionate about retail and always looking to share our news, views and insights. With so much information out there, we wanted to share just a small selection of retail news headlines from last week that we found interesting…
Poundland plans biggest store opening spree yet
Poundland is planning 50 new stores, in what experts say is the latest sign of business rates cuts “breathing life back into the high street”.
Poundland today announced the “biggest transformation of its store estate in its 32-year history”, with 50 new or relocated shops to be opened by September, creating half a million sq ft of retail space and up to 800 jobs.
It comes a week after M&S revealed plans for 20 “bigger and better” stores by April next year, creating over 3,400 jobs.
Leading property consultancy Colliers said both were signs of a recent business rates revaluation already spurring on store openings.
The revaluation will see retail’s rates bill fall 10% from April, and as much as 30% or 40% for some shops, with department store-sized units and larger among the biggest winners, according to Colliers. It estimates M&S alone will see £70m (23%) shaved off its annual bill.
So-called ‘downwards transitioning’ is also ending, meaning retailers are in line to pay lower tax immediately from April instead of waiting for the new rates to be phased in over three years.
“It will breathe life back into the high street, and if you are a successful retailer like Poundland, you’re going to use the opportunity to do that,” said John Webber, Colliers head of business rates.
“Poundland, as a major player on the high street, will be aware of the savings they will be seeing, which will allow them to take decisions to invest in and expand their very successful business elsewhere.
“This is good news for Poundland and good news for the high street.”
Poundland’s plans include new high street and shopping centre stores, along with much larger ones up to about 18,000 sq ft in retail parks. A spokesman said Poundland was particularly pleased with the performance of its larger stores, having opened a number last year, and was on the lookout for more.
Among the larger stores in the pipeline is Britain’s biggest Poundland yet, in Scotland, an 18,380 sq ft branch set to open in March on Glasgow’s Crown Street. It will join recently-opened ‘supersized’ Poundland stores in Nottingham, Teesside, Denton and Peterborough.
The spokesman said the expansion drive was to support a “range revolution”, that had seen Poundland move into new categories including chilled & frozen food, in a bid to offer an alternative to supermarkets.
Poundland MD Barry Williams said: “We know how customers appreciate the effort we’ve made in the last few years to transform our offer, offering them more of what they want to buy, week-in, week-out.
“That transformation means we have to step up our search for the best locations to bring the best of Poundland to customers across the UK and that’s precisely what we’ll do in 2023.
“We will continue to work hard to find the right locations that suit the range of Poundland formats we now offer - from small neighbourhood convenience stores to our large destination stores.”
Leroy Merlin takes Naterial showrooms to more countries
French DIY market leader Leroy Merlin is taking its showroom concept for Naterial own-brand outdoor ranges to more countries. Following a pilot store in Mallorca and Barcelona, and openings in Portugal, Georgia and Uruguay, the first location in France has now been announced for the spring. It is located in Villeneuve d'Asq near Adeo's headquarters in the Lille region. This is reported by the French industry service Zepros and other media. A Naterial site is also to be opened in Greece this year.
Naterial is Leroy Merlin's own brand of outdoor furniture. The concept calls for showrooms of 1 000 m² to 2 000 m² with no on-site warehousing or sales and the products being delivered instead.
Asda faces prospect of strikes over plans that risk thousands of job losses
Asda is facing the prospect of strike action unless it makes significant concessions on its self-styled "efficiency" plans that have placed thousands of jobs at risk, a union source has told Sky News.
GMB representatives met late on Thursday - hours after Asda revealed a set of proposals that mainly involved moving away from some higher-paid nightshift work.
While 211 night shift managerial roles were placed at risk under the plans, the biggest change would see 4,137 hourly-paid workers move to daytime roles, resulting in the loss of their night shift pay premium of at least £2.52 per hour.
Asda said its planned changes reflected shifting customer habits and a desire to operate as efficiently as possible.
The GMB, which has been a long-time critic of the debt fuelled takeover of the chain in 2021 by the Issa brothers and TDR Capital, has declared the plans as "unworkable".
It argues that many of those being asked to change hours would be unable to take the pay hit because of the cost of living crisis.
The union also said it placed additional logistical difficulties on staff as the revised shifts would finish at midnight.
The source added on Friday that a significant proportion were expected to take redundancy under the plans as they stand.
But they said there would be a constructive approach to the official consultation period and talks would aim to secure concessions from management to avoid the prospect of any strike ballot.
National officer Nadine Houghton said in a statement: "Many Asda workers feel this is just a cost cutting measure, needed to alleviate the financial pressure of the debt leveraged bonanza to buy Asda - but it's going to hit some of the lowest paid retail workers on the high street.
"These changes to night-time replenishment have outraged night workers, who will now lose between £300 and £500 a month.
"Many say they will not be able to afford to take the new hours being offered due to the loss of night enhancements and hours. We could see significant job losses."
7 must-visit flagship stores opening in 2023
Shoppers started to return to stores last year in the wake of Covid restrictions lifting.
Although footfall remained 14.2% below 2019 levels, this gradually improved throughout the year. In fact, stores were the big growth channel for most retailers this Christmas.
As we enter the New Year, a raft of retailers have revealed plans for new flagship stores that promise to woo shoppers to the high street.
Retail Gazette rounds up some of the most exciting new stores opening to look forward to in 2023.
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Ikea
One of the most anticipated store openings of the year is Ikea’s new store on Oxford Street, which is set to open this autumn.
The hoardings for the flagship have been up for over 12 months now, housed in the former Topshop store at Oxford Circus.
Ingka Investments, the investment arm of Ikea’s owner Ingka Group, paid a whopping £378 million deal for the site that will bring bookshelves, mirrors and meatballs to London’s famous shopping street.
The 239,000 sq ft store will house around 5,000 Ikea products, with the option of taking home soft furnishing or ordering larger furniture items for home delivery.
Ikea retail operations manager Tolga Öncü tells Retail Gazette that Oxford Street will debut some elements never before seen in Ikea stores.
“There are some new components that we haven’t tried in any Ikea location in the past. Things that we think that can increase engagement, local relevancy and provide a voice for certain topics that are important for Londoners,” he says.
One thing guaranteed to be there – Ikea’s famous meatballs. Oxford Street will have an on-site restaurant serving up an array of Swedish treats.
Sephora
After launching its UK website last October, French beauty giant Sephora is set to open the doors to its London flagship store in March in Westfield London.
The beauty retailer will occupy a 6,000 sq. ft store housing a range of products from makeup to fragrance, skincare, haircare, and wellness.
The store will stock more than 140 big-name brands including Drunk Elephant, Summer Fridays and Fenty as well as a lineup of brands exclusive to Sephora UK such as Makeup by Mario.
The store will also feature a Grand Beauty Hub which the business said would “provide memorable experiences for customers as they explore makeup, skincare, haircare, fragrance, body and personalised gifting”.
Flannels and Sports Direct, Metrocentre
Shoppers in the North East are getting two flagships for the price of one this year as Frasers Group brands Flannels and Sports Direct open at Gateshead’s Metrocentre.
The two brands have signed a 15-year lease on a two-level, 130,000 sq ft former Debenhams unit.
The store, currently used by Next Home and Beauty, will be divided in two with Flannels taking the slightly bigger ground floor and Sports Direct taking the upper level.
The new store is part of the retail giant’s plan to create a number of UK flagship sites that bring everything under one roof.
Other Frasers Group brands housed in the store include Evans Cycles, Game and a Belong gaming area.
The store will also house a 33,800 sq ft Everlast Gym including changing areas, two treatment rooms and a large reception area.
On running
On is opening its first standalone European store next month in London’s West End.
The Swiss running retailer will occupy a three-story, 860 sq ft store, located at 169-173 Regent Street, which is set to open February 10.
The store will serve as a seasonal hub for the local running community with the lower ground floor of the store housing a flexible space for panels, workouts, and events, including a pop-up bar.
On the top floor, shoppers will experience the latest in retail technology, including a high-spec wall that has hidden gait-cycle analysis technology, meaning shoppers only need to run a few strides to get instantly matched with the best shoes for their running style.
On co-founder David Allemann said: “Swiss Engineering means for us loving technology and the natural world. In our store on Regent Street, we have combined both innovatively and surprisingly.
“With technology and innovation at the forefront, On London will empower shoppers to engage with our brand in an entirely new way. The focus lies on our community of runners, outdoor enthusiasts, and everyday explorers.”
Pandora
Pandora is set to open a new flagship store at the 70/88 Oxford Street development, situated opposite the Tottenham Court Road Elizabeth Line exit on Dean Street.
The new, two floor unit will be Pandora’s third on Oxford Street, but the first one east of Oxford Circus.
It is expected to become a stand-out store in Pandora’s portfolio with further details on its features and technology set to be announced at a later point.
Uniqlo
Uniqlo is set to open a new store in Covent Garden next spring, where it will be joined by sister brand Theory as it further expands across the UK.
The new store, which will be its 17th in the UK, follows the opening of Uniqlo’s Battersea Power Station store, which opened last year.
Uniqlo UK COO Alessandro Dudech says: “It’s an honour to be opening in an area of London with such cultural and retail heritage and continuing to expand our UK presence in important retail locations.
“With such a strong footfall from both Londoners and tourists, we look forward to offering LifeWear to new and existing Uniqlo customers.”
M&S, Liverpool
M&S has several big new flagships opening in 2023 as part of a £480m investment in “bigger, better stores”.
The retailer is opening 20 new stores this year, including a raft in former Debenhams stores. It has taken the old Debenhams units in Bullring in Birmingham, Trafford Centre in Manchester, White Rose in Leeds, Lakeside in Essex and in Liverpool One.
Every one of these stores could have made this list but Retail Gazette is particularly excited about the 100,000 sq ft new store in the centre of Liverpool.
The store will open during the summer and will include a café, clothing and home departments as well as a new-look food hall and in-store bakery.