Lifestyle

A colossal £2 billion is expected to be spent on pre-owned gifting this Christmas and is an indication of just how consumers have embraced this growing and now mainstream secondhand market.

Yves Hanania of Lighthouse, a luxury industry expert specialised in growth strategy, has analysed the latest sector trends for FashionNetwork.com, and the new challenges and paradigms in a crisis-ridden market.

Tradition fails to ring any bells when it comes to what younger consumers want to hear in stores during the Christmas period.

It’s a nervous time for many retailers wondering whether a big-spending last-minute Christmas rush materialises to improve their top and bottom lines.

It’s a tricky business trying to gauge consumer emotions/confidence at this time of year but the outlook for January and the wider first quarter looks bleak, driven by a bigger-than-usual spending squeeze, says the BRC.

More positive news on two fronts for Christmas retail. Super Saturday (21 December) saw a welcome year-on-year rise in UK footfall as early Boxing Day discounting helped drive last-minute Christmas shoppers into store.

​British retailers reported a weak run-up to the Christmas holidays with sales falling again and businesses worrying about higher costs in 2025, the Confederation of British Industry said on Friday.

​We can add to the fast-growing number of property firms announcing record performances for their retail tenants. Network Rail has released its July-September retail performance figures for its 19 managed UK stations.

​Discounter The Original Factory Shop (TOFS) is reportedly “exploring options” after Deloitte earlier failed to find a buyer for it. Teneo is believed to be acting as adviser to its owner as those options are looked at.

Official UK retail sales figures didn’t deliver much festive cheer for the fashion sector on Friday with news that clothing sales dropped last month.

Online UK retail revenues have recovered from a tough period in recent months and new figures show they’re building as we get closer to Christmas.

​Super Saturday (21 December) is being widely predicted to be a frenzied affair, it being the final Saturday before Christmas, and a new report said that, combined with this Sunday, £3.04bn will be spent by UK consumers.

It may be too late to do much about marketing for the 2024 festive season but with 2025 plans already forming in retailers’ and brands’ minds, it’s worth noting a new study from eBay.

​Debenhams has named insider Patrick Duggan as its new creative director. It's clearly an endorsement of the work he's done already as he's been the senior head of creative at the online marketplace for almost two years.

It’s been a busy year of UK expansion for Miniso. And the story continues with the Chinese lifestyle retailer about to open its first-ever UK airport store at London Standsted on Thursday (19 December).

There were 40,000 fewer UK retail sector jobs recorded in September compared to a year ago and 225,000 fewer than five years ago, according to the latest job figures from the ONS.