Retail

Bloomberg Hennes & Mauritz AB appointed Helena Helmersson as the first female chief executive officer of the fast-fashion pioneer, taking over from founding family scion Karl-Johan Persson, who struggled to contain competition from cheaper rivals and online platforms that revolutionised shopping. Helmersson was previously head of operations, and Persson moves to the supervisory board after more than a decade, where ...

Bloomberg Swatch Group fell to the lowest in a decade as Switzerland’s largest watchmaker faces a triple whammy from Hong Kong protests, competition with smartwatches and viral outbreak in China. Operating profit fell for the first time in three years, dropping 11% to $1.1 billion. Analysts expected 1.09 billion francs. The shares fell as much as 4.1% on January 30. ...

Bloomberg De Beers sold the most diamonds since April in a sign the industry is starting to recover from a slump in demand last year, though the market will require more evidence of a sustained rebound. The Anglo American Plc unit sold $545 million of diamonds in its first sale of the year, traditionally one of the strongest buying periods ...

Bloomberg J Sainsbury Plc said it will spend 1 billion pounds ($1.3 billion) on a plan to reach net zero greenhouse-gas emissions by 2040. The UK grocer intends to halve plastic packaging by 2025, reduce food waste and lower its water usage, according to a statement on Tuesday. It will also install LED lights in stores, use more electric vehicles ...

Bloomberg Lucky’s Market, a Colorado-based grocer that bills itself as offering “organic for the 99%,” filed for bankruptcy after it began closing most of its stores. About 3,000 jobs are at stake. The company listed assets of as much as $500 million and liabilities of at least that amount in a bankruptcy petition filed in Delaware. Lucky’s operated 39 stores ...

Bloomberg For already-suffering Japanese retailers, the rapidly spreading novel coronavirus could further dent business by keeping away one of their few growing groups of patrons: Chinese shoppers. China’s efforts to control the coronavirus have led to a ban on all tour groups heading overseas, and shut down transportation in multiple large Chinese cities. Limiting the movement of would-be Chinese customers ...

Bloomberg Steinhoff International Holdings NV’s European retail unit, which runs the Pepco and Poundland discount chains, is attracting interest from buyout firms, people with knowledge of the matter said. Advent International and Partners Group Holding AG are among private equity firms considering bids for Pepco Group, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. ...

Bloomberg Walmart Inc is testing out a higher minimum starting wage for certain jobs in hundreds of stores as part of a broader overhaul of roles and responsibilities across its massive US workforce. In the 500 or so stores that have introduced the retailer’s new operating model, dubbed “Great Workplace,” some associates in the fresh, front-end and replenishment areas will ...

Bloomberg Fairway Group Holdings Corp has gone bankrupt for the second time since 2016, overwhelmed by its lingering debt load and cutthroat price competition in the grocery business. The New York grocer filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy with an agreement to sell five stores and a distribution facility to Village Super Market Inc, owner of 30 ShopRite supermarkets. The deal, ...

Bloomberg Wm Morrison Supermarkets Plc is cutting thousands of managerial roles from its grocery stores across the UK in favour of increased shop-floor staff. The British grocer is changing the way stores are staffed in a bid to serve customers better as competition intensifies in the supermarket industry, Morrison said. The changes will result in the removal of about 3,000 ...