Stella & Dot, a US-based direct selling
business, has launched in the UK. The company, which sells
jewellery and accessories through a home-based sales force,
currently has a base of 18,000 “fashion
entrepreneurs” in the US. According to the Daily Mail, the company aims to recruit 500
UK-based agents by the end of the year.
Reflecting “tough market conditions”, PC and
video-games retailer Game reported that group
like-for-like sales were down 9.9 percent in the first half.
Group turnover in the 26 weeks to 31st July was £558.8
million, compared with £624.6 million in the same period
last year. Operating losses widened from £18.8 million to
£48.0 million during the first-half. Further, in the 34
weeks to 24 September 2011, the group’s total sales declined 11.4
percent.
Confectionery retailer Thorntons is on the hunt
for a new chairman following the announcement that its incumbent
chairman John von Spreckelsen will retire within 12 months.
Designer fashion label Ted Baker is launching a
click and collect service enabling customers to order online and
pick up their purchase in one of Ted Baker’s 31 stores, free of
charge. The stores will also handle returns and will be able to
refund the customer on the spot. For more on click and collect,
including best-practice ideas from the UK, US and Europe,
click here.
TNT Post has expanded into the packets and parcels market with
the launch of a service for online retailers that it says will be
up to 10 percent cheaper than Royal Mail. Predominantly targeting
businesses that use Kelkoo and
eBay to sell their products, TNT is projecting
volumes of 17 million in the first year of operation. To
facilitate the service, TNT Post UK has invested in new automatic
sorting.
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