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Mergers and acquisitions, unseasonable weather patterns caused by climate change, and surprise appointments and resignations dominated the headlines in a year in which clear blue water separated the high street’s winners and losers.
It may have been a new year, but January was full of the usual ups and downs of fashion retail.
Primark has heralded an excellent festive era, posting a record ahead of Christmas. Sales at clothing retailer British Foods, owned by Associated Associates, rose 15% year-over-year in the 16 weeks to Jan. 7, hitting a record high for the week. Sales were 18% higher than at the same time last year, when the Omicron Covid variant had a strong impact on footfall.
Marks & Spencer also kicked off the year with a bang, announcing that it was investing £480m in 20 new “bigger, better” stores across the UK to help deliver its omnichannel ambitions, and creating more than 3,400 jobs nationwide. It identified city centre shopping centres includingthe Trafford Centre in Manchester, White Rose Shopping Centre in Leeds, Liverpool One and Birmingham’s Bullring and Grand Central for the new stores.
Meanwhile, a retail saga that began in 2022 has come to a denouement: Matalan has shown that it has been acquired through an investor organization that adds Invesco, Man GLG, Tresidor and Napier Park, as part of a debt-equity deal. and a clothing store on the hunt for a £350 million credit rescue package. The new agreement provided for a “significant reduction” in gross debt “from £593 million to £336 million. “It eliminated all other contenders in Matalan, adding its former chairman and co-founder John Hargreaves, who had partnered with private companies. Private equity firm Elliott Advisers submitted a 50:50 bid for the organization.
There has been a restructuring at the most sensible luxury fashion platform, Farfetch, where Elizabeth von der Goltz has taken the helm as fashion and retail director and chief executive of Browns. Holli Rogers, lead logo director, and Martin Avetisyan, lead expansion director, left the company to “pursue other opportunities. “
Fast fashion retailer Boohoo is set to cut 100 jobs at its London office and Drapers revealed a series of redundancies at its Manchester headquarters as it sought to offset an 11% year-on-year drop in profits in the four months to 31 December 2022. .
Job cuts were also looming on the main streets. In a separate exclusive, Drapers revealed that Ted Baker was conducting a strategic overhaul of its headquarters staff, putting 30 positions in the departments at risk, adding sales and merchandising.
February brought the first touch of stardust of the year when Louis Vuitton, the luxury logo owned by LVMH, appointed music and fashion mathematician Pharrell Williams as artistic director of menswear, replacing designer Virgil Abloh. The news took over the fashion world, with some praising it. as “a hire,” while others warned that Williams was not qualified for the position.
Harvey Nichols was hiring, too. Drapers revealed the luxury department store was appointing Annabel Thorburn, senior vice-president of ecommerce at Sweaty Betty, as its new ecommerce director.
In another insider-only move, Drapers revealed that Simon Platts, guilty sourcing director at Asos, was quitting. Platts had been at Asos for almost a decade and in the past he was head buyer at outdoor clothing store Blacks Outdoor Group.
Following the announcement of the launch of its points of sale in January, M
Frasers Group has completed the acquisition of five premium fashion brands from JD Sports – Cricket, Tessuti, Scotts, Giulio and Choice – which are part of the portfolio of 15 brands it acquired from JD Sports Fashion in December 2022 in a deal valued at £47. 5 million. Some suppliers told Drapers they remained in limbo after the acquisition, and Frasers Group said later that month it would not accept their spring/summer stock deliveries or place new orders with them until further notice.
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Additional task cuts saw February: Drapers revealed that New Look was putting up to 500 stalls at risk at its main distribution centre in Lymedale, Newcastle Under Lyme, due to the reduction of its retail outlet fleet from around 800 outlets in the UK to 440 sites, which has replaced the situation. “Operational needs” of the distribution center.
Far from giving the industry a spring in its step, fashion retailers expressed widespread disappointment at chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s Spring Budget on 15 March, which ignored the pleas to reintroduce tax-free shopping, which had been abolished from the start of 2021, and provide detailed support for businesses.
Sadly, Jacqueline Gold, CEO and former CEO of underwear giant Ann Summers, died on March 16 at the age of 62, after a “courageous” seven-year war against breast cancer. The fashion retail industry paid tribute to a true “pioneer”. “Who will be greatly missed.
Matalan has hired the most sensible new bosses after its acquisition in January. It appointed former Co-op food boss Jo Whitfield as chief executive and Karl-Heinz Holland, director of German fashion retailer Takko, as chairman. Interim chief executive Nigel Oddy resigned at the end of the month, while interim chairman Paul Copley resigned but remained a board member as a non-executive director.
In other people move news In The Style’s founder, Adam Frisby, stepped down from its board following completion of the sale to UK-based private equity firm Baaj Capital in a £1.2m deal. Although no longer its owner, Frisby remained CEO of the womenswear etailer.
Drapers also revealed that Sweaty Betty CEO Julia Strauss and COO Mark Smith were leaving following its acquisition by Wolverine Worldwide in August 2021.
Meanwhile, store John Lewis Partnership cancelled its staff bonus after posting a loss of £78 million for the year to January 28, 2023, as prices rose across the company and task cuts loomed. Total sales were £12. 25 billion, down 2% year-on-year. year. Although John Lewis sales rose 0. 2% to £4. 94 billion, the organisation was hit by a 3% drop in the Waitrose supermarket department to £7. 31 billion. A loss of £27 million in 2021/22 amounted to £234 million, largely due to asset impairments.
President Sharon White said in a letter to employees, “As we want to be more effective and more productive, this will have an effect on the number of our spouses. This is a big regret for me personally. This would be tricky enough in any business. This is especially tricky in a marriage, where everything we do has a purpose in mind: “Happier people, happier businesses, and a happier world. “
A happier company is Leeds-based fashion and home décor retailer Joe Browns, which has announced plans to open 10 outlets across the UK by the end of 2024, creating two hundred jobs.
Few people are synonymous with an entire decade of fashion, but Dame Mary Quant is one of them. On April 13, she died at the age of 93 and British fashion stores paid a triiete to the owner of the miniskirt and pioneer of the “joyful freedom” of the 1960s. Caroline Rush, chief executive of the British Fashion Council (BFC), said: “She was an icon of the 1960s, embodying the spirit of lawless British creativity, defying social norms. It will be synonymous with the iconic sixties. miniskirt and bob Vidal Sassoon.
Meanwhile, Drapers revealed that Frasers Group had put 30 workers in the lead through a layoff inquiry at fashion chain Choice, which bought JD Sports Fashion in late 2022. The organization has also become the favorite to purchase the Prévu Studio menswear logo. some of his other JD acquisitions, after he took over the management in March.
Job cuts loomed elsewhere, as high street retailer Next put an unknown number of jobs at risk at Joules, the fashion and lifestyle retailer it bought out of administration for £34m in December 2022.
April saw a lot of fashion store exits. Rachel Osborne, CEO of Ted Baker, has announced her departure and is expected to be followed by other top executives. A number of Boohoo Group purchasing managers have left, including Gemma Dune at PrettyLittleThing, Jo Ingham at Debenhams and Charlotte Pettican at Dorothy Perkins.
But April wasn’t all doom and gloom: a few outbreaks appeared. M
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Turbulence continued within the Boohoo group, which asked its suppliers for 10% relief on existing orders in a bid to cut costs. Drapers also revealed that it had requested discounts of more than 30% on existing orders from some of its Turkish suppliers, to adjust to costs in Pakistan.
New Look is also suffering financially, as resources said in talks with lenders about refinancing £100 million of debt into a loan due in June 2024. This came after two recent restructurings introduced through the company, which industry resources described as “never-ending”. -cycle. ” In 2020, the store introduced a Voluntary Enterprise Agreement (CVA), which saw the transition of 68 outlets to 0 rental and the conversion of 402 outlets to revenue-based leases.
Following its previous acquisition this year through a consortium of investors, Matalan has appointed Ben Smith, interim head of acquisitions and sales, to the newly created position of lead director, as it embarks on a transformation program.
Dr. Paul Wilkinson, Global Director of Marketing, Sales and Managing Director for the United States of the British Barbour logo, has added the Managing Director for the United Kingdom and Ireland to his responsibilities.
The sun is shining on the UK’s main streets as BDO High Street Tracker announced that in-store fashion sales rose 7. 9% year-on-year in the week to May 28, driven by warm weather.
Footwear giant Dr. Martens surpassed £1 billion in profit for the year ended March 31, 2023, but profits took a hit, falling 29% year-on-year to £128 million, which it attributed to increased depreciation and amortization, a rate of impairment. of £3. 9 million and a rate of £10. 7 million related to its bank borrowing.
Drapers revealed that Boohoo Group is moving forward with its supply chain demands, requesting 10% on open orders from some of its suppliers, for the second time in two months.
Meanwhile, reports were circulating that Next was contemplating a £500 million sale of Reiss, after the logo returned to a profit of £39. 6 million in the year to January 29, 2022, after a loss of £3. 8 million last year.
Another British logo is the subject of a takeover bid: Authentic Brands Group (ABG), owner of Reebok, Ted Baker and Juicy Couture, has acquired the intellectual assets of bootmaker Hunter. Days later, restructuring firm AlixPartners was appointed administrator and revealed that Hunter’s total debts exceeded £100 million.
In other footwear news, independent stores have called out sportswear brands Asics and New Balance for cutting ties with some smaller stores. One independent told Drapers: “They are crucifying our business. “
Drapers revealed several staff changes this month, starting with Matalan’s appointment of Phil Hackney as lead chain operations director and Katherine Davis as lead retail director, as the company continued its transformation strategy .
We also broke the news that Sweaty Betty had named Melissa Mullen as its new president.
Drapers Footwear Awards 2023 winners were also announced at a ceremony at Grosvenor House London this month. More than 300 leaders of UK and Ireland’s footwear industry gathered for the glittering awards ceremony and Drapers presented the Lifetime Achievement Award to Sir John Timpson, non-executive director of the Timpson Group. New Look and Schuh were both named double winners.
New Look’s Jacqueline Hale was named Store Staff Member of the Year and the store also won the award for Best Online Deal of the Year.
Schuh’s loyalty programme, The Schuh Club, was recognised for Best Use of Technology, while the footwear retailer’s Trafford Centre branch in Manchester was recognised for Best Store Design.
The sun turned to rain this month and reduced demand from fashion stores as inclement weather slowed sales. The price of retail sales rose 1. 5% in July compared to the 2. 3% expansion in July 2022, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and KPMG. Retail Sales Monitor.
Primark’s Click and Collect trial for swimwear, children’s clothing and childcare products expanded to an additional 32 outlets in and around London in July, bringing the total number of participants to 57, adding to the 25 outlets in north-west England, Wales and North Yorkshire. It has already offered this service since its launch in November 2022. At the same time, the store has reduced the costs of some children’s clothing by 10% to 25%, in order to help consumers combat the cost crisis. of life.
Separately, Drapers revealed that women’s underwear store Lounge Clothes plans to open 8 outlets over the next 12 months, starting in September with a first unit at Westfield London in White City.
Unbound Group, owner of Hotter Shoes, has unveiled its aim to appoint administrators after failing to raise between £1. 5m and £2m for a formal restructuring plan. The logo was to be sold to British lifestyle logo WoolOvers.
M&S also suffered a blow when Michael Gove, secretary of state for levelling up, housing and communities, rejected its proposals to demolish and rebuild its flagship at Marble Arch, which would have included a new 10-storey space and two and a half floors of retail selling space. Stuart Machin, CEO of M&S, said the decision was “a short-sighted act of self-sabotage” and the retailer’s future in Oxford Street was now being reviewed “because of the whim of one man. It is utterly pathetic.”
Superdry has announced the closure of 8 of its 104 UK outlets, adding Stoke-on-Trent, Ipswich, Luton, Telford, Lincoln and Bury St Edmonds. The affected outlets were operated through its franchise Aldrich Group, the corporate holding company of the independent mini-chain Robert Goddard.
There was also bad news for designer logos, as Julien Macdonald went into liquidation due to the effect of the Covid pandemic and a significant loss of profits following the collapse of Debenhams, with which he had a long-standing partnership. In 2020, designer Christopher Kane bought the logo assets and intellectual assets of his namesake logo in a pre-package deal with his sister, after the company was looking for an investor to refinance its debts. The Vampire’s Wife women’s clothing logo has been forced to settle its debt to HMRC following a liquidation petition filed through the tax authority.
Meanwhile, Drapers revealed that Frasers Group’s job cuts continued, as it put more than 100 jobs at risk of redundancy across Missguided, I Saw It First and Studio Retail in its Manchester office.
Unseasonable weather rolled on, further impacting fashion retail, driving consumers to pivot to autumn/winter clothing instead of high summer. Tu at Sainsbury’s reported a 95% year on year uplift in outerwear as customers attempt to tackle the recent UK-wide downpour, for example, with online searches for raincoats up 446% and wellies up 248% compared with the same period last year.
The industry raised eyebrows with the resignation this month of Harvey Nichols’ chief executive, Manju Malhotra, after three years in the role – and 25 years at the luxury branch – to be replaced by the son of Sir Dickson Poon, who owns the company in a private capacity. corporate capacity within his luxury goods company Dickson Concepts.
Up to 300 independent stores have been unable to manage their stock after suffering a cyberattack on fulfillment software provider Swan Retail. The attack caused a “significant disruption” in supply across the company, adding stock management and order fulfillment. and accounting.
Following the store closures announced in July, Superdry secured an asset-based loan of up to £25 million from Hilco Capital, to carry out its recovery and cost-cutting plans.
Meanwhile, AK Retail, owner of Yours Clothing, bought Arcadia Group’s former plus-size women’s clothing brand, Evans Clothing, for £8 million. It bought Evans’ brand, its intellectual assets and its visitor base from Australian store City Chic Collective, which exited the European market due to “current economic conditions” and efforts to “streamline business. “
AllSaints buoyant, reporting “record” cash income and a 182% increase in profit for the 12 months ended Jan. 28. The group, which includes AllSaints women’s and menswear logo and John Varvatos menswear logo, said its operating profit rose to £28. 5 million from £10. 1 million in 12 months, while cash rose 36% to £457 million. He attributes this expansion to “new products and the continued launch of stores overseas, specifically in Taiwan and South Korea. “
Drapers revealed that the layoffs were imminent and affected a further 10 people from its London-based marketing team and some of its New York-based technical team. A source told Drapers that the luxury retailer is looking to reduce the length of its six-story headquarters in London.
Staff at Selfridges head office were also feeling the heat, as the premium department store placed a number of employees into redundancy consultation as it looked to drive efficiency following its sale to a partnership comprising Central Group and Signa Holding in 2022.
Sosandar SS23
In a rollercoaster year, the UK went through a heatwave in September, when temperatures reached 30°C. For retailers, this translated into sadness after a devastating summer, as the heat had a chilling effect on sales of fall clothing such as coats and knitwear.
Despite the sunshine and autumn chill in the air for the sustainability-focused UK logos, Drapers revealed that Thought Clothing had moved into management after failing to locate a client for the company. While it planned to continue operations for a while, all workers in non-commercial positions were laid off, affecting between 20 and 25 people. The logo was introduced as Braintree Clothing in the UK in 2002 and replaced its call to Thought in 2016. At the time of management, it offered through around 20 independent outlets in the UK, as well as John Lewis Online and Sainsbury’s.
Drapers also revealed that sustainable fashion brand People Tree has cut the majority of its UK jobs as part of a cost-cutting drive, making 12 staff redundant from its London headquarters. A few weeks later, at the end of the month, it showed that it was liquidating its UK operations: it owed more than £8. 5 million to its creditors.
The cyberattacks that occurred in August continued, when Drapers revealed that the underwear organization Wacoal, which owns the Fantasie, Freya and Elomi brands, had been the victim of an attack that took its websites offline and allowed independent stores to place orders.
The month also brought a slew of trading updates from fashion retail’s biggest names, with mixed results. At Asos, CEO José Antonio Ramos Calamonte’s turnaround plan was taking shape. The etailer reported that reducing inventory and pivoting to a faster production model helped it deliver a 100% rise in adjusted EBIT year on year, in the six months to 3 September. Drapers also revealed the etailer was planning to close its Outlet department housing non-strategic third-party brands, putting 15 jobs at risk of redundancy.
Meanwhile, John Lewis’ recovery plan was stalled. It said its profit target of £400 million would come two years later than initially planned due to “inflationary pressures”, revising the target date to 2027/28.
Other stores were on the move. Flannels has opened new outlets in Cork and Nottingham, adding to its network of more than 70 outlets in the UK and two in the Republic of Ireland.
Retail design organization Poeticgem also expanded by adding the Little Mistress womenswear logo to its portfolio. The logo’s founder and CEO, Mark Ashton, remained to run it, under the new industry name of Fashion.
There have been tweaks at River Island’s more sensible store, which has appointed Jane Eskriett and Richard Grainger as new co-CEOs, coming from Boohoo Group and Next. The hires follow the departure of former CEO Will Kernan in November of last year. .
October kicked off with a surprise for the industry when Dame Sharon White, chair of the John Lewis Partnership, announced plans to step down in February 2025 rather than seeking re-election when her five-year term at the retailer ends. This will make White the shortest-serving chair in the partnership’s 159-year history.
Retail stalwart Next has also been making waves during its acquisition spree: it announced on Oct. 13 that it had bought British lifestyle store FatFace for £115. 2 million. As part of the deal, Next acquired 97% of the company, leaving control of FatFace. with 3%. FatFace has retained its autonomy of control and artistic independence, with CEO Will Crumbie at the helm. Experts told Drapers it was a “great decision” and a “smart investment” for both parties.
The weather continued to wreak havoc on the fashion retail industry. Freelancers were hit hard when Storm Babet ravaged the UK and Ireland, leaving many spaces underwater. The effect has caused independent stores to count the charge after a drop in footfall and sales due to flooding, store closures and travel restrictions. On October 20, Charlotte West, owner of women’s and bridal clothing store Anne Wilkinson, in Retford, Nottinghamshire, said she had “not had a single visitor walk through the door” as citizens were asked to evacuate their homes.
The Kurt Geiger footwear logo, which reportedly envisions a £400 million sale, has had a positive year. Its profit rose 31% year-on-year to £329. 5 million in the 12 months to 28 January, while EBITDA rose 49% to £30. Million. It said handbags had been a “huge engine of expansion” and now accounted for 50% of its sales in the UK.
Womenswear retailer New Look also celebrated a “good year” despite a pre-tax loss of £87. 8 million over the 52 weeks to March 25, compared with a loss of £25. 5 million a year earlier. However, overall profit rose 0. 6% year-on-year to £844. 7 million. New Look also showed that it has entered into a £100 million refinancing deal ahead of the maturity of its loan in June 2024. Chief executive Helen Connolly told Drapers: “We’ve been targeted in the core business, whether it’s keeping our inventory models tight or focusing on our full-price sales, fewer discounts, and much more targeted promotional activity.
October 30 was a big day for the news: Frasers Group proved the rumors to be true: it sold the Missguided womenswear logo to fast-fashion retailer Shein. Authentic Brands Group (ABG), owner of Ted Baker, has signed a deal with Shein, creating a new sub-logo of Forever 21. Meanwhile, online fashion giant Asos has reportedly put Topshop up for sale, just two years after it bought it administratively following the collapse of the Arcadia group.
On the luxury side, designer Phoebe Philo unveiled her highly anticipated eponymous brand, also on October 30, and two-thirds of the collection sold out within 24 hours.
November is a busy month for fashion retail, with the highly anticipated Fall Statement, Black Friday, the Drapers Inner Circle Summit and the Drapers Awards.
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt delivered bittersweet news to retailers, as while he confirmed that relief in business rates would continue, he revealed that higher-value homes would take a monetary hit when the Autumn Statement was announced on November 22. Hunt froze the small business multiplier at 49. 9p until April 2025 and extended the 75% business tax relief to £110,000 for retail, hospitality and recreational trade for another year. But he also said the popular multiplier that applies to higher-value homes will rise to 6. 7% in line with inflation. .
This was not welcomed by Helen Dickinson, CEO of the British Retail Consortium (BRC), who said retailers and customers were “sold out” by the statement, which she slammed for “not doing enough” to support the industry.
Just after autumn came Black Friday (24 November), with footfall across all UK retail destinations up 7. 1% compared to last week. However, some stores have done discounts before, such as John Lewis, which submitted its first offer on Nov. 2.
Also in the advertising sector, Primark reported a 17% increase in revenue, to £9 billion, over the 52 weeks to September 16. Sales in the UK were up 11% year-on-year, despite a decline in traffic. The market share has increased from 6. 4% last year to 6. 7% this year.
November is an eventful month for M
Fast fashion giant Shein was believed to have made a confidential filing for an initial public offering (IPO) in the US. The confidential paperwork lodged with US securities regulators would see the Chinese-founded, Singapore-based etailer float on the US stock market in 2024, making it the largest IPO in years. The etailer was also revealed to be planning new a headquarters in Manchester as it continues UK expansion.
Drapers has announced that Tommy Mallet has dropped its namesake footwear logo, Mallet London, after 8 years as co-founding director. Meanwhile, in news, Jigsaw’s artistic director, Jo Sykes, announced her departure after more than 4 years in the role, and Farfetch appointed its former vice president for Latin America, Daniel Funis, to the role. position as CEO of Yoox Net-A-Porter (YNAP). Dr Martens has appointed Ije Nwokorie to the newly created role of Chief Brand Officer and Giles Wilson to the position of Chief Financial Officer (CFO), effective 2024.
Drapers continued to play its role as a unifying force in the fashion retail industry, bringing together combined store and logo leaders at the 2023 Drapers Inner Circle Summit, where attendees heard from the likes of Primark’s Paul Marchant, and the prestigious 2023 Drapers Awards, where many professional fashion stores gathered here to celebrate the winners of the industry’s most coveted awards. Rock star manager and former president of Fenwick, Mark Fenwick, won the Lifetime Achievement Award and M’s Director of Home & Apparel
Retail figures from BDO’s High Street Sales Tracker paint a bleak picture for November that casts a shadow over the entire golden retail quarter, with overall comparable sales falling -0. 3% from 2022 figures, due to deep discounts in the previous period. Black Friday failed to convince British shoppers.
Fashion is the most affected sector, with in-store sales falling by -3. 6% compared to the same month last year.
As consumers cut back on their spending, holiday discounts arrived in early December, leaving stores facing extended discounts during the holiday season as budget-conscious consumers were reluctant to pay the more reasonable dollar.
Despite the somewhat bleak outlook, fashion stores were still determined to celebrate the holiday season, with many releases of bright and soulful holiday and independent advertising campaigns creating beautiful and eye-catching window displays.
Drapers also ended the year on a high note, unveiling the 2023 Drapers Power Hundred list, its annual birthday bash of the names in UK fashion retail that have left the biggest mark on the industry, be it financial , cultural, environmental. creative, representational, diversity and inclusion.
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