Argos has acquired the Alba and Bush
brands of low-cost electricals, reports the Financial Times.
Amid a barrage of forced metaphors (While other retailers are
throwing their toys out of their proverbial prams in disgust at
the downturn in consumer spending, Mothercare has finally
moved off the investors’ naughty step”), The Times looks at how chief executive Ben
Gordon improved the fortunes of the once-struggling
retailer/cataloguer.
“Customers want an investment. They want purchases to
make them feel sensible and virtuous, whereas a year ago they
wanted to feel bold, devil-may-care, spontaneous. The search for
validation through ownership of the right kind of product
continues.” So says a Times writer who contends that consumers are
still spending, but for a different type of satisfaction than
they had been.
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