Here are some of this week’s news and features highlights handpicked by TheIndustry.fashion team.
Lack of tax-free shopping sees Selfridges slice further 2% of workforce
I’ll never understand why then Chancellor Rishi Sunak decided to ditch tax-free shopping in the UK, just at the time that the country could really have benefited from the scheme as Brexit came into force. London and other UK tourist destinations could have cashed in at the expense of their European counterparts by attracting wealthy tourists and encouraging them to spend their cash on luxury goods here.
Instead, we are in a ludicrous situation whereby even British shoppers would be better off taking a Eurostar train to Paris for a day trip to Avenue Montaigne to buy their Dior and Chanel (and, ridiculously, their home grown Burberry) than they are nipping to Selfridges on a tube or in a cab.
The result of this baffling decision – which Sunak as PM and his successor as Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, have stubbornly refused to reverse – is the above. Job losses at the jewel in the UK’s retail crown, Selfridges.
All I can imagine is that “offering cheap handbags to rich Chinese consumers” (which is how some in the Government have dismissed the scheme) is not a vote winner. But the impact of not doing it results in shop workers (who could not afford the handbags they are selling) losing their jobs, with restaurants, bars, hotels, duty-free airport stores and more losing out on trade too. The people who work in those companies need high net worth tourists to come here to spend as it keeps them in a work. Let’s hope the next Government is prepared to see sense on this at last (and can we have some sense on business rates too please?).
Lauretta Roberts, Co-founder, CEO and Editor in Chief.
A sign of the times: Is live shopping the future of retail?
The allure of live shopping has taken the consumer world by storm in recent years. The retail phenomenon arrived in the UK during the pandemic, with major players such as Fatface, Very and Harvey Nichols introducing livestream shopping. So, what is it and how can more retailers benefit from implementing it now?
TheIndustry.fashion spoke to Daniel Fisher, UK General Manager of livestream shopping platform Whatnot, and Kirsty Keoghan, General Manager of Global Fashion at eBay, to hear their thoughts on the impact of live shopping on commerce.
Chloé Burney, Senior News & Features Writer.
Gary Neville becomes face of Hawes & Curtis ahead of Euro 2024
Who’d have thought it? Gary Neville as the new face of Hawes & Curtis that is. Then you put two and two together and remember that Neville was a guest ‘dragon’ on ‘Dragons’ Den’ in January. Stomping ground of no other than long-standing ‘dragon’ Touker Suleyman, who happens to own Hawes & Curtis.
It would have been interesting to be a fly on the wall for that conversation. “So, Gary, fancy doing a bit of modelling for my brand Hawes & Curtis and wearing our collection when you head to Germany for TV coverage of Euro 24 this summer?” – Suleyman may have asked.
Knowing he’s not quite in the same modelling mould as his old pal and former Manchester United and England teammate, David Beckham, it would have been interesting to witness how Neville responded. Fair play to him for taking up the offer though, and pretty shrewd of Suleyman too. Neville will be seen on national TV decked out in various Hawes & Curtis summer looks, from soft tailoring to more casual pieces.
Interesting to also note that, while Hawes & Curtis predominantly has stores in the UK, including its flagship on London’s Jermyn Street, it also has a store in Cologne, Germany. That may be doing some decent business this summer, as five Euro 24 matches are scheduled to be played at Cologne Stadium, and there will be fan zones in the city. Will Neville be seen popping into the Cologne store for a wardrobe refresh, I wonder?
Tom Bottomley, Contributing Editor.
Its parent company is called Fast Retailing, so why is Uniqlo so slow at opening stores?
For those shopping in London, it’s not difficult to find a Uniqlo store. From Covent Garden and Regent Street to two locations on Oxford Street, the brand’s presence is plentiful. However, until its new Edinburgh store – its first in Scotland – opened last month, outside of London its stores were only in Manchester, Bluewater and Oxford.
In his latest column for TheIndustry.fashion, Marcus Jaye explores why there are so few Uniqlo stores in the UK and why Fast Retailing is so slow at expanding elsewhere. An interesting read as the brand continues to experience high demand for its clothing and accessories, with items such as its viral cross-body bag and various designer collaborations driving recent growth.
Sophie Smith, News Editor & Senior Writer.
Ted Baker Regent Street (Alamy)
Frasers Group reportedly frontrunner to acquire Ted Baker
In news that is unlikely to surprise anyone, Frasers Group is said to be leading the pack in the race to acquire Ted Baker’s UK operation. This was placed into administration a few weeks ago following then owner Authentic Brand Group’s ill-advised decision to outsource the running of its stores here and across EMEA to a Dutch retail partner that barely anyone had heard of.
I’m still feeling somewhat raw about Frasers’ decision to place luxury retailer Matches into administration just weeks after buying it and then buying back its IP and leaving administrator Teneo to sell off its stock. I don’t blame Frasers for the demise of Matches – that did not happen on its watch as it was already a basket case when it bought it – but I do so wish they had let someone else buy it and give it more of a go. But whether the outcome, long term, would have been different is up for debate.
Ted Baker is a very different business with a very strong brand that, if nurtured, I’d like to think could be revived. And Frasers has shown it does invest and nurture brands when it needs to. Look at the money it’s ploughing into stores for Sports Direct and Flannels, for example. While it’s still not clear whether it will be the next parent company for Ted or not, at least one thing you can say is it won’t need to call upon the services of an unknown retail partner to tell it how to run a store.
Lauretta Roberts, Co-founder, CEO and Editor in Chief.
