High service electronics and maintenance products distributor Electrocomponents has revealed in its half-yearly financial results for the six months ended 30th September 2012 that group sales were slightly down from £626.5 million in 2011/12 to £606.5 million this year. Fewer trading days and currency movements were blamed for headline profit before tax declining by 30 per cent to £41.5 million, while headline free cash flow grew by 6 per cent to £24 million, with lower Capex and improved working capital. UK sales were good and grew by 5 per cent but international sales declined by 2 per cent.
Smart Turnout, the cataloguer/online retailer, has launched a new website to improve the customer experience. New features for the site include a streamlined browsing process by grouping together product categories, a filter and view process so users can select items by colour, a new ‘you may also like’ section as well as a ‘one step checkout’.
After yesterday’s announcement that Morrisons delivered lower than expected sales, the Telegraph reports its chief executive Dalton Philips has called for improvement and said the retailer must compete better with promotions from rivals and improve the message to customers of Morrisons’ “key points of difference”. Morrisons is also set to go ahead with investments in convenience stores and online technology.
According to the Financial Times, Groupon disappointed investors with third-quarter results that missed revenue targets, sending its shares to fall by 16 per cent in after-hours trading. The article notes Groupon is struggling to keep customers interested in its daily deal offerings and revealed a decline in revenue growth for its core business and a slowdown in international markets. The company has announced revenues were $569 million, below expectations of $592 million.
Fashion chain Jane Norman has announced it is moving its London headquarters to Cardiff and is pledging up to 50 more jobs at the office over the next six months. The BBC reports that the retailer, bought by Edinburgh Woollen Mill (EWM) group last year, has not decided where exactly the headquarters will be based but that options include sharing the Cardiff offices of EWM owned Peacocks or use its distribution site at nearby Nantgarw.
John Lewis has released its 2012 Christmas advert. The advert, called ‘The Journey’ focuses on a snowman going on an epic journey across the river, mountain, road and city to get the perfect gift for his companion in time for Christmas. You can view the advert here.
Which? takes a look at the Co-operative becoming the first British retailer to launch a protected Christmas savings scheme. The piece says the Co-operative is to set up a trust structure to protect savers’ money, but full details of the scheme won’t be revealed until it is launched in the New Year.
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