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European Retail Briefing - March 2020

ANALYST COMMENT – WHAT COVID-19 MEANS FOR ITALIAN RETAILING
What we've seen
Experience of the impact of COVID-19 on retailing in other countries
Online purchasing in Italy before COVID-19
Figure 1: Online purchasing in the past 12 months, 2019
Figure 2: Online purchasing in past 12 months in Italy, 2009-19
Figure 3: Online purchasing in Italy by category, 2019
What it means
EUROPEAN RETAIL SALES
Key points
Figure 4: Major European economies:  Year-on-year retail sales value growth, 2019-20
Figure 5: Major European economies:  Year-on-year retail sales volume growth, 2019-20
Inflation
Figure 6: Major European economies:  All items CPI, 2019-20
Figure 7: Major European economies:  Food price inflation, 2019-20
LAUNCH ACTIVITY AND INNOVATIONS
Belgium: Colruyt Group experiments with vertical farming in Bio-Planet stores
Belgium: Lidl launches first loyalty app in Belgium
Germany: Dr Martens revisits its German origins with new pop-up
HEADLINES FOR THE MONTH
Grocers
Multi-sector retailing
Department stores
Furniture retailing
Online shopping
Sports and leisure goods retailing
NEWS ANALYSIS – FOOD AND DRINK
 CO-OPS
UK: Co-op to expand same-day delivery service to over 650 stores
 CONVENIENCE STORES
UK: Costcutter and Nisa to feature refillable household products in LocoSoco tie-up
UK: Sainsbury’s launches new ‘On the Go’ concept store
 GROCERS
Belgium: Lidl expands electric vehicle charging network from 61 to 100
France: Leclerc sees sales rise 2.9% thanks to its successful hypermarket formats
Germany: Kaufland eliminates microplastics from cosmetic and personal care ranges
Italy: Store opening and strong online sales help boost full year results for Esselunga
Norway: Spar increases market share in Norway to 7.3%
Sweden: Axfood increases sales for all of its subsidiaries
UK: Asda
…experiments with 3D technology and electronic shelf labels at Stevenage store
…sales down after ‘mindful’ spending by shoppers at Christmas
UK: Sainsbury’s
…launches ‘Nectar Prices’ promo for loyal customers
…pilots Ecover refill stations
UK: Tesco
…takes on Aldi as it pledges to price match hundreds of products
…launches plasters to match different skin tones
…to adapt large store bakeries to customer demand
…zero-waste shopping service Loops enters UK with Tesco tie-up
UK: Waitrose
…grows online delivery network as it prepares Ocado split
…pushes for product provenance in latest ad campaign
…to launch thousands of new and revamped product as it ends deal with Ocado
 OTHER FOOD SPECIALISTS
UK: Holland & Barrett’s clean beauty store in Birmingham offers refill stations and demo sinks
NEWS ANALYSIS – CLOTHING AND FOOTWEAR
UK: Bleak outlook for French Connection amid continued difficult trading conditions in the UK
UK: Bonmarché sold to Peacocks
UK: Boux Avenue drafts in advisers
UK: Burberry autumn/winter 2020 fashion show will be carbon neutral
UK: Expansion buoys rising sales for lifestyle brand Raging Bull
UK: House of Holland drafts in administrators as it seeks ‘additional investment’
UK: Lyle and Scott launches first womenswear collection in over a decade
UK: New Look cuts quarterly losses under new CEO Nigel Oddy
UK: Primark
…sales rise but coronavirus may be a threat
…shows off latest Wellness Collection in first pop-up launch
UK: Reiss sales rise thanks to new partnerships and rapid global  expansion
UK: River Island joins fellow retailers H&M and Asos in transparency pledge
UK: Ted Baker in talks to sell off London headquarters
UK: UK’s first sock vending machine by SOCKSHOP
UK: Victoria Secret sells 55% stake to private equity firm
UK: Warehouse shows off first menswear collection online
 FOOTWEAR RETAILING
UK: Shoe Zone warns of 100 store closures if business rates are not reformed
NEWS ANALYSIS – MIXED GOODS 
UK: Poundland
…to open 60 frozen and chilled ‘shop-in-shops’
…expands its kidswear range in Pep&Co stores
 MULTI-SECTOR RETAILING
Netherlands: Blokker to be relaunched under Mega World
UK: M&S
…extends click & collect cut-off to help grow its online sales
…to close two distribution centres risking 662 jobs
…expands mobile self-scanning and payment option to 44 more stores
…warns landlords over loss-making stores
…bra-fitting service goes digital
…extends refill scheme to Manchester in a bid to tackle plastic waste
 DEPARTMENT STORES
Ireland: Thomas Brown opens flagship in Dublin mixing the ‘physical and digital’ into one
Switzerland: Central Group to buy stake in Swiss department store
UK: Beales
…announces 12 store closures following administration
…remaining stores poised to close as no buyer emerges
UK: Animal rights group Peta buys stake in House of Fraser
UK: John Lewis
…underperforms and dampens results across the Partnership
…launches new labelling to own-brand baby and childrenswear
…to sell its first men’s make-up brand online and in-store
…unveils first ever TV ad campaign outside Christmas period
UK: Selfridges open Hurr fashion rental pop-up
NEWS ANALYSIS – HOUSEHOLD GOODS
 DIY RETAILING
UK: Topps Tiles warns of sliding profits significantly below expectations
UK: Travis Perkins posts positive results against challenging market backdrop
UK: Homebase returns to profits and is set to open smaller formats
 CARPET RETAILING
UK: Axminster Carpets secures future
 FURNITURE RETAILING
France: IKEA to open small city centre store in Nice
UK: Emma Mattress annual sales surge
UK: Uncertainty around coronavirus impacts DFS full-year guidance
 HOMEWARES RETAILING
UK: Dunhelm expects full-year pre-tax profits to be ‘slightly ahead’ of analyst expectations
UK: Laura Ashely to ‘consider all appropriate options’ if it cannot secure funds
NEWS ANALYSIS – ONLINE 
Germany: Zalando welcomes Zign a brand ‘fully dedicated to sustainability’
Netherlands: Coolblue announces record turnover and further expansion
UK: Head office redundancies at SecretSales under new owner
UK: I Saw It First launches wholesale with Just A Group as global agent
UK: Ocado
…advises customers to order early as it faces ‘exceptionally high demand’
…earnings fall as sales surge
UK: SilkFred rolls out ‘inclusive’ clothing with ‘disability conscious’ brand
NEWS ANALYSIS – OTHER RETAIL
 BOOK AND STATIONERY RETAILING
UK: Waterstones sales increase boosted by non-book items
 SPORTS AND LEISURE GOODS RETAILING
Netherlands: Decathlon expands bike delivery scheme to more cities
UK: Outdoor specialist Montane hopes to reach ‘next level of growth’ under new owner
UK: JD Sports Chairman slams CMA findings
 JEWELLERS
UK: Watches of Switzerland expands Knightsbridge showroom in multi-million pound project
 SHOPPING CENTRES
UK: Capital and Regional profits drop as they battle ‘retail headwinds’
UK: Eco market to open in Camden
UK: Hammerson sells remaining retail parks at a discount
UK: Intu Lakeside opens ‘first-ever’ store dedicated to online retailers
UK: Intu Properties postpone financial results after failing to raise new equity
UK: Strike a pose at Selfie Factory’s fourth store in the Icon Outlet at the O2
UK: Westfield owner accelerates disposal programme as UK income declines
NEWS ANALYSIS – ECONOMY
UK: BRC reports retail sales ‘returning to growth’ in January 2020
UK: February retail sales inch up 0.1% affected by trio of storms
UK: ONS January results reveal a 3.7% uplift in all retail sales

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