retail
Face coverings will now be mandatory for all retail and leisure staff from this week, in new restrictions announced by the Government in a bid to stop the growing number of COVID-19 cases across the country. Retailers could be hit with fines up to £10,000 for failing to stick to the new rules. In an address to the House of Commons, the PM said "we will extend the requirement to wear face coverings to include staff in retail, all users of taxis and private-hire vehicles and staff and customers in indoor hospitality, except when seated at a table to eat or drink.”.
Private equity firm Lone Star has pulled out of the race to purchase big four supermarket brand Asda after the sale to Sainsbury’s was blocked by the CMA last year. This just leaves asset manager Apollo interested in making the purchase.
Westfield London and Timberland have announced a new partnership in which they will launch a new nature reserve at the Westfield London shopping centre. The reserve will feature a wild flower meadow, insect hotels, beehives and a variety of fruit and vegetable plants. The area aims to educate people about nature and growing food.
The Co-op has said they are focusing investment on price and technology, as the impact of the pandemic and recession changes expectations for customers. The convenience retailer has announced plans to open 50 new stores and refit another 100 before the end of the year. CFO Shirine Khoury-Haq said “Clearly we’re watching with price across the market and we will be investing in price, as other retailers will and we will continue to monitor that coming towards the end of the year and into the next,”.
For the first time in 67 years, staff at John Lewis will not be receiving an annual bonus as the retailer recorded a huge £635m loss in the first half of the year. This was largely due to a one-off cost of £500m as it devalued its department store portfolio.
Beauty and cosmetics brand L’Oreal has announced plans to launch a new recycling scheme in partnership with recycling experts TerraCycle in a bid to reduce the environmental impact of its products. Recycling bins will be located in Tesco, Boots, Sainsbury’s and Superdrug which will allow customers to drop off used products which will be recycled into plastic pellets used to make outdoor furniture
LEISURE
JD Wetherspoon is to cut around 450 jobs across its airport portfolio as passenger numbers are slashed in the wake of the pandemic. Chief Exec John Hudson said "The decision is mainly a result of a downturn in trade in these pubs, linked with the large reduction in passenger numbers using the airports. We should emphasise that no firm decisions have been made at this stage."
Whitbread has announced plans to cut up to 6k jobs across its restaurant and hotel brands including Premier Inn, Beefeater and Brewers Fayre. As demand for travel dived, the group has faced a 77% year-on-year decrease in sales due to the extended period of lockdown.
PROPERTY
Property investor Town Centre Securities (TCS) has sold 4 retail assets in Scotland and London for a total cost of £35.2m as they reduce exposure to the retail sector.
Another high street Government scheme has been launched, designed to support recovery from falling footfall and the impact of the covid-19 pandemic. 68 high streets which have been marked as ‘heritage sites’ will have access to the funding which will support these locations to repurpose any historical buildings not currently in use and create new vibrancy for towns. Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said “This fund will help breathe new life into high streets in towns and cities across the country – restoring them to their full glory so that they are beautiful places for people to shop, work and enjoy.”
OPENINGS AND CLOSURES
GO Outdoors opens new Stoke megastore; Sushisamba restaurant group is to take the 10th- and 11th-floor rooftop space at the W Edinburgh hotel, which is due to open in 2022; Capital & Regional, the UK’s leading owner and manager of community shopping centres, opened a major new 23,000sq ft Matalan store at The Mall Maidstone; The fashion chain J Crew is to permanently close all six of its UK stores in the latest exit by a US retailer.
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