Here’s what the Property Consulting Group have been talking about this week
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Welcome to CACI’s Property Consulting Group’s News Wrap Up Blog.
Keeping up to date with the latest news and emerging trends in the retail and leisure sector is key to supporting the project work we do with our clients. This means our team are constantly searching for relevant news stories, so we thought we’d share some of the best ones we have been talking about recently with you.
1. The owner of The Entertainer snaps up The Early Learning Centre (ELC) from Mothercare for £13.5 million
Gary Grant, the owner of The Entertainer, plans to invest and develop own‑brand ELC toys, whilst the sale will help Mothercare take a step towards eliminating their bank debt.
2. Plans for Boots to undergo a complete makeover will go ahead, specifically targeting millennials with play stations, live-demonstrations and trend zones
Amid rising competition from other online and offline beauty retailers, the new beauty hall will also see the addition of 20 new brands to create enhance customer engagement and experience.
3. Lush has opened a new concept store which includes a florist, hair lab, tea and coffee kiosk, perfume workshop and even a spa complete with treatment rooms
The exciting new store, which has opened on Church Street in Liverpool, is spread over 3 floors and is large enough to hold 9,000,000 bath bombs!
Take a look inside the new Lush store
Fig.1 Lush, Church Street, Liverpool. Source Metro
4. Brighton’s new laneway development ‘Hannington’s Lane’ is due to open next month, offering residential, office and retail space, accommodating the likes of Kurt Geiger, Oliver Bonas and more
The £100 million development will feature 13 new retail units in a bid to boost tourism and attract new visitors.
5. The Royal Bank of Scotland and NatWest customers will trail the new biometric bank card, allowing customers to verify contactless purchases over £30 with their fingerprint
The revolutionary technology was designed to make payments easier and increase security for customers making large purchases.
Last year more than 6bn payments were made using contactless “wave and pay” technology, but the £30 limit is restricting further growth.
6. JD Sports could acquire Footasylum in a £90 million deal that is expected to complete in April or May this year
Peter Cowgill, the chairman of JD Sports, believes that the acquisition could benefit their operations with the experienced and knowledgeable management team from the footwear focussed retailer.
7. The John Lewis Partnership’s entire transport fleet will be carbon free by 2045 in their pledges to reduce carbon emissions to net zero by 2050
Within the first 10 years, the parent company of John Lewis and Waitrose will focus on reducing their carbonised operations as much as possible and will introduce new refrigeration technology, biomethane-powered trucks, electric vans and renewable electricity.
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PrimarkThe worlds biggest Primark is set to open in Birmingham this April, featuring three restaurants, five floors and a beauty studio.The new Duck and Dry salon in Primark offers styling and blow-dry’s.Primark have embarked on a paid partnership with Disney, launching Alice in Wonderland and Dumbo themed products as well as a Disney Café.Primark to open their biggest store in Birmingham Styling and blow-drys available in Primark via Duck and Dry salon |
8. You can now buy items from more than 20 leading brands directly from the Instagram app
Retailers such as H&M, Nike, Prada and Zara have incorporated these services into their profiles, as the social media app makes a push into ecommerce.
9. WebAR is changing the way we shop, and the latest developments promise to change the future of the customer journey
WebAR allows anyone with a mobile to experience AR without the hassle of downloading additional content, bringing their retail experience to life.
10. Retail sales rose by 0.4% in February compared to January despite the huge uncertainty over Brexit
Could the increase in retail sales be attributed to the stock-piling mindsets of shoppers or ambiguity due to the withdrawal of EU plans?
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The new Aldi Store in BalhamThe supermarket launches a sub-brand ‘Aldi Local’ in Balham, South London, as part of a new brand identity scheme to help shoppers distinguish between its smaller city stores and conventional-sized stores. A successful trial in the Balham store could see the sub-brand roll out across the city. |
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