This week's retail news 'you might 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…?
?Kingfisher reveals half of sales come from sustainable products.
DIY giant Kingfisher has revealed that more than ￡6.4bn of group sales now come from Sustainable Home Products (SHPs), amounting to nearly half (49.4%) its total revenue.
The B&Q owner also reported it had already exceeded its 2025/26 targets for carbon emissions reduction and reduced its Scope 1 and 2 carbon emissions by a significant 62% since the 2016/17 baseline – surpassing its goal of a 37.8% reduction.?
Last year, Kingfisher?partnered with several other home improvement retailers?to form a global taskforce to encourage the sector in its Scope 3 emission reductions.
The DIY firm is now working on new targets for Scope 3 emissions in collaboration with its vendors, which include B&Q and Screwfix.
Kingfisher chief executive Thierry Garnier said: “Leading our industry in responsible business and energy efficiency is an important part of our ‘Powered by Kingfisher’ strategy.”
“While we still have a journey ahead, I’m pleased that over the last year we have made strong progress on many of our targets.”
In its latest?Responsible Business report,?the?retailer?outlined four priorities of inclusivity, climate action, making homes greener and healthier and supporting community housing needs.
The retailer made notable progress towards its inclusivity goals. In 2023/24, women comprised 28.6% of its senior leadership roles and 39.6% of management positions – moving closer to the targets of 35% and 40% by 2025/26, respectively.
Community support remains a key component of Kingfisher’s Responsible Business strategy.?The retailer set an ambitious goal to aid more than 2m people with housing needs by 2025/26, a target that was reached ahead of schedule.?
In the past year alone, Kingfisher’s community projects reached more than 1.2m people, bringing the total to 3.2m since 2016/17.
Recognising the growing consumer demand for eco-friendly products, Kingfisher has also introduced a green star product mark to help customers easily identify products with a lower environmental impact.
?Ex Tesco boss to make John Lewis more Metro.
The outgoing chair of John Lewis has said the firm is “underrepresented in convenience” as it aims to answer the growing?customer need?for localised, more convenient shopping.
Sharon White, who will retire from the John Lewis Partnership (JLP) this September, confirmed that convenience is now a priority for the company, and that a “bigger presence” for its John Lewis and Waitrose brands is needed within the sector.
White’s replacement will be the ex-CEO of Tesco, Jason Tarry. As head of the retail titan, Tarry was previously responsible for one of the UK’s largest convenience store footprints.
Big plans for Little Waitrose.
JLP, which has its own ‘Little Waitrose’ small shop format, targeted the convenience sector last year, when it?partnered with Uber Eats?to enable on-demand grocery deliveries.
In March, executive director James Bailey then confirmed Waitrose was planning to open its first new stores in over a decade as part of the move. He said he was “confident that we’ll be announcing [new] shops, especially Little Waitrose”.
It’s an industry that Tarry already has experience in. Through its Express and Metro store formats, Tesco accounts for?30% of the UK convenience sector.
The retail juggernaut previously stated that one of its company goals is to be “easily the most convenient for our customers [who] continue to expect better, faster, integrated digital retail to make shopping easier.” It opened its 2,000th Tesco Express store last year.
In a?press release?announcing his appointment to the John Lewis board, Tarry said he was “looking forward to delivering its clear strategy.”
The shift in?business objectives?comes after a period of financial difficulty for the retail brand. After a ￡234m loss in 2022. JLP published a pre-tax profit of ￡56m in March. It began amping up hiring and shared a full?list of interview questions?to fast-track talent acquisition.
White’s latest comments suggest these?recruitment?efforts will also support the company’s expansion into convenience stores.
Less is more in modern retail.
John Lewis is not the only company that’s chasing Tesco Express success in 2024. Ikea UK confirmed it would open up a high street store on London’s Oxford Street?in spring 2025.
The Swedish firm is famous for its giant warehouses which can take customers an entire day to trek through, including a 1.3 million square foot distribution centre in Doncaster, England. But its new central London location will be just 85,000 square feet.
The industry shift is answering calls for smaller, more frequent purchases from customers. Despite volume sales decline, the convenience sector?grew by an estimated 5.3%?in 2023.
Younger buyers are driving the trend. This group is used to streamlined, tech-driven online shopping. When it comes to buying in-store, they expect a similarly speedy experience.
46% of Gen Z consumers said a “quick and easy checkout” was their top concern when making a purchase in a?report?from the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC).
High street woes.
The rise in on-the-go purchasing is reflected in today’s flailing high street. Numerous UK?brands have gone into administration?as the rise in ecommerce curbed appetites for in-store shopping. In February, retail footfall was found to be?11.5% down?on 2019 levels.
In this context, local convenience stores are proving more successful than larger outlets. As shoppers stay at home to shop, they are less likely to visit a warehouse or department store.
Yet, they will still pop to the corner shop to make an impulse purchase; something?one in ten Brits?reportedly now does every time they leave the house.
Small businesses are, naturally, well positioned to capitalise on these?customer insights. As buyers ask for ways to fit shopping into their busy daily lives, they will increasingly search for local stores with product lists they already know and that answer a specific need.
Still, competition for footfall within the UK high street remains high, and tech will be vital for outpacing rivals. Retailers should look into adopting smart?payment technologies?and?AI-powered tools?to take advantage of the trend towards smaller, on-demand shopping lists.
?S?strene Grene to open first store in the North-East.
Danish homewares retailer S?strene Grene is to open its first store in the North-East at Newcastle’s Eldon Square.
Situated on the upper mall in a 5,000 square foot unit, the shop will will stock the retailer’s Scandinavian inspired products, including home decor items, kitchenware, stationery, gifts and craft supplies.
The store will also feature areas for workshops and events where customers can engage in crafting activities and learn new skills.
Jonathan Cooper, UK joint venture partner at S?strene Grene, said: “Newcastle is the perfect place to continue our UK expansion and we can’t wait to welcome S?strene Grene to the North-East. It will offer customers the chance to discover the joy of finding beautiful, functional and affordable items, all while experiencing the unique atmosphere that S?strene Grene is known for.”
S?strene Grene is currently expanding across the UK and now has more than 30 stores here as it looks ahead to reaching 100 by 2030.
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Cormac Hamilton, general manager of the Eldon Square team, added: “We are very excited to welcome S?strene Grene to the North-East. Eldon Square’s central location allows for high footfall, providing a great opportunity for the Scandinavian brand to build awareness and rise in popularity in the North-East.”
The new store will open this summer.
?Marks & Spencer to launch clothing repair service in partnership with SOJO.
Marks & Spencer?is partnering with clothing and alterations experts?SOJO, supported by the ￡1 million ‘M&S Plan A Accelerator Fund’ as the retailer "commits to investing in driving the circular economy".
From August, the British department store's customers can book a repair service through a new online hub called ‘M&S Fixed by SOJO’.
It comes after new insight from Marks & Spencer research revealed only 10% of the population is confident enough to repair clothes themselves, while 60% of consumers are looking for retailers to offer more services which support them to lower their carbon footprint.
Through the dedicated online hub, M&S customers will be able to select and book a range of bespoke repair services - from zip replacements to invisible knitwear mending – through an online form.
With repairs starting from just ￡5, M&S clothing can be sent, repaired by SOJOs in-house repair team and returned directly to the customers doorstep within seven to 10 days.
Richard Price, Managing Director of Clothing & Home at Marks & Spencer, said: "At M&S, exceptional quality products are at the heart of everything we do, and we want to ensure that all our clothes are too good to waste.
"Through the launch of our repair service, we’re making it even easier for customers to give their clothes ‘another life’, whether they are using our new repair service or long standing clothes recycling scheme."
Founded in 2021 by Josephine Philips, SOJO is on a mission to make tailoring and repairs more accessible. She added: "It has always been a core mission of ours at SOJO to make repairing clothes mainstream and to extend the life of as many garments as possible.
"I’m so excited that M&S has chosen to launch a repair service with us at SOJO as it’s an incredibly big step towards that mission. As a brand that has remained a firm constant in almost every household and wardrobe in Britain, this partnership with truly bring easy, accessible and convenient repairs to the masses.
"Beyond that, as one of the longest standing British brands, having M&S join our Pledge to Repair adds such a great weight to our call for industry wide change here in the UK."
The partnership with SOJO comes as M&S reveals a new platform called Plan A ‘Another life’ - visible across the retailer’s, website, app and stores from this month. It brings together all the retailer’s circularity services into one place, from the new partnership with SOJO and Beauty Takeback Scheme with Handle, to its long-running clothes donation partnership with Oxfam, which was formerly known as ‘Shwopping’.
All initiatives now sit together as part of Plan A - ‘Another Life’ to offer a more seamless experience for customers who are looking for ways they can support a shift to a more circular economy.
As well the range of services, the platform will be home to a selection of 60 second ‘how to’ videos covering everything from removing bobbles from knitwear to adjusting hemlines - created by M&S’ team of in-house technical experts.
?Superdrug has opened its largest ever store in the UK.
Superdrug has opened its largest bricks-and-mortar store in the UK at Westfield Stratford as it ramps up its expansion plans.
The health and beauty retailer opened the store occupying a 9,890 sq ft space at the shopping centre in east London, which is double?the size of its previous store in the same location.
This comes after the retailer announced it is set to open 25 new locations in the country as it celebrates its 60th year of trading.
The extended store will offer customers access to the latest health and beauty products,?everyday toiletries, beauty treatments and luxury fragrances and Superdrug’s own-brand?cosmetics range Studio London.
The space also features a beauty studio that has doubled in size, offering customers access to professional eyebrow, lash and nail services.
Superdrug property director Nigel Duxbury said: “We are delighted to be opening an even bigger?store at Westfield Stratford, making it the largest Superdrug store in the UK. We are confident that?local customers will be excited by the new store offering and enjoy our ranges of popular health and?beauty brands, luxury fragrance counter and professional Beauty Studio.”
https://www.retail-week.com/health-and-beauty/superdrug-opens-its-largest-ever-uk-store/7046533.article? (Subscription required)
?Wickes Sees 80% surge in community programme applications amidst cost-of-living crisis.
Half of applicants are schools as demand for free products rises among charities and community groups
Home improvement retailer Wickes announced an 80% year-on-year increase in the number of charities and community groups applying for free products through their?community programme. 50% of those applying are schools and 27% are community spaces and gardens.
The increase in demand is indicative of a continuing trend as this sector struggles with the cost of living.
A recent survey carried out by local community investment company,?Neighbourly, reported that the past year has brought immense challenges for communities. From the cost-of-living crisis to funding constraints, local charities and good causes have been at the forefront, tirelessly supporting those in need. This latest set of results provides a snapshot into the realities of what is happening in our community.
Some of the key findings from the Neighbourly survey, carried out with over 1,000 charities and community organisations revealed:
The Wickes initiative provides invaluable assistance to local communities across the country, donating essential products to help with the maintenance and transformation of community spaces.
Gary Kibble, Chief Marketing and Digital Officer at Wickes said: “Our company purpose, to help the nation feel house proud, extends to our communities. The increase in demand is indicative of the challenges that have been identified in the Neighbourly survey. Since the programme started in 2022, we have supported over 3000 projects with products and skills, the highest demand being for gardening projects of which 63% are going into schools to support wellbeing, followed by products to help with renovations and maintenance. We aim to help take the pressure off their fundraising efforts and we know our support is making a real difference to them.”
Isaac Ngugi, a Supporter of Advocacy For All said: “We are bowled over by the generosity of Wickes to get these planters into action. Advocacy For All knows the importance of the allotment for our members with learning disabilities and autistic spectrum conditions. This will give some of our less physically able members to reap the benefits of what an allotment can offer both physically and mentally. It is a great place for our members to congregate, socialise and learn some new skills.”
Tom Sefton, the Poverty Lead at Good Company, said: “The products donated by Wickes included secondary glazing film, various draught excluders and heat reflective radiator foil. These were handed out at group workshops that we have been running in Epsom, Leatherhead, and Tadworth for food bank clients and other local families most affected by the cost-of-living crisis. We wanted to show people that making small changes like this can significantly reduce their energy usage.”
Stephen Hudson Church Warden at St Mary’s Church Foodbank said: “Thanks to Wickes for their kind and generous gift for our cupboards in the Church. The Foodbank is an integral part of the church and village of Great Massingham and was started during the Covid lockdown in 2020. Its success has been overwhelming”
The Wickes Community Programme is open to all charities and community organisations seeking to transform or maintain their spaces. By providing free Wickes products, the programme aims to support the creation of enriching environments that foster learning and community engagement.
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