Retail

  Bloomberg Tesco Plc froze prices on 1,000 products until next year to maintain its leading market share in the UK amid intense competition from discount grocers Aldi and Lidl. Britain’s biggest grocer reported better-than-expected sales and only slightly reduced its profit guidance for the fiscal year as it works to keep prices low and increases pay to blunt the …

  Bloomberg Starbucks Corp. illegally fired a Michigan employee because she engaged in union activism and participated in a US labour board proceeding, a National Labour Relations Board judge ruled. The agency judge’s decision requires the coffee chain to offer the worker reinstatement with back pay. It says Starbucks must also hold a meeting with employees as well as representatives …

  Bloomberg Levi Strauss & Co reported quarterly revenue that fell short of expectations, and the denim maker also reduced its outlook for the full year, citing economic uncertainty along with supply-chain disruptions and a stronger US dollar. Revenue in the fiscal third quarter ended August 28 was $1.52 billion, below the $1.6 billion average estimate of analysts surveyed by …

Bloomberg Marks & Spencer Group Plc is starting to offer a digital credit account allowing customers to spend as much as £500 interest-free as shoppers battling the higher cost of living seek to postpone their payments. Sparks Pay is available to customers who have signed up to the M&S Sparks loyalty program and allows shoppers one-click purchases on the M&S …

  Bloomberg Amazon.com Inc. plans to hire 150,000 seasonal workers, about the same as last year despite slowing sales growth and predictions of a lackluster holiday shopping season. The world’s largest online retailer typically hires legions of temporary workers this time of year to help store, pack and ship items from its warehouses. Employees can earn more than $19 an …

  Bloomberg Superdry Plc shares jumped as the UK fashion brand returned to profit after Covid-19 pandemic-induced losses. The retailer, known for its logo T-shirts and bright colours, reported adjusted profit before tax of £21.9 million ($24 million), compared with a £12.6 million loss a year earlier. The shares rise as much as 13% in London. The return to profit …

Bloomberg India’s biggest cookie manufacturer, Britannia Industries Ltd., clinched a deal for operations in Kenya as part its plan to expand in Africa. The company teamed up with Nairobi-based Kenafric Industries to purchase Catalyst Capital-backed Britania Foods Ltd. in Kenya in a $20 million transaction that also involved acquiring property and a plant, Mikul Shah, a director at Kenafric, said …

  Bloomberg JBS SA, the world’s largest meat supplier, will discontinue operations at its US plant-based unit Planterra and focus on growing markets for alternative proteins in Brazil and Europe. The shutdown comes amid softening consumer demand for plant-based proteins. Maple Leaf Foods Inc. recently decided to reduce the size of its plant-based segment after a review found demand will …

  Bloomberg Nestle SA, the world’s largest coffee company, will invest more than 1 billion Swiss francs ($1 billion) by 2030 to encourage farmers supplying its Nescafe brand to employ more sustainable farming methods as climate change and extreme weather threaten crops. Nestle will offer training about the best planting techniques as well as cash incentives to motivate farmers to …

  Bloomberg Large retailers grappling with supply-chain snarls, inflation and increased automation are cracking down on orders from their vendors. Stores such as Walmart Inc. and Target Corp. have long fined suppliers that fail to deliver products on time, in the right amount or with the correct specifications. But after the pandemic allowed for some leeway, US retailers are now …