retail – Page 12 – The NEN – North Edinburgh News

Little Dobbies to open in Comely Bank

Dobbies, the UK’s leading garden centre retailer, has announced the development of its first small format store – Little Dobbies.

Little Dobbies, which will be located on Raeburn Place in Stockbridge and is scheduled to open in November, is the first of its kind for the retailer that has 68 garden centres across the UK.

The core of the Little Dobbies’ offer will be horticulturally focused with a range of convenience gardening products. This will be complemented by a carefully curated range featuring houseplants and pots; a small range of gifts; and selected seasonal ranges. For opening, the seasonal ranges will feature Christmas items, including decorations, wreaths and hampers.

There will also be a coffee shop, offering hot and cold drinks, as well as takeaway food.

Graeme Jenkins, CEO at Dobbies, said: “This is an exciting new venture for our team, as we launch the first Little Dobbies. The store will feature gardening essentials for city centre residents and will showcase some of the extensive ranges available at our larger stores and at dobbies.com

“Thank you to everyone who has contributed to the project and we can’t wait to open the doors of Little Dobbies in November.”

Opening hours for Little Dobbies are Monday to Friday, 10:00 -18:00; Thursday 10:00-19:00; Saturday and Sunday 09:00-18:00.

For further information visit dobbies.com

Usdaw welcomes unanimous support for Ne’er Day closing

Happy New Year for shop workers?

Shop workers’ trade union Usdaw has welcomed Holyrood’s Petitions Committee’s unanimous decision to back a petition to end New Year’s Day trading in large stores.

The committee has agreed to write to stakeholders within the retail industry and urges the Scottish Government to conduct the required consultation.

Usdaw launched a petition last year calling on the Scottish Government to launch a consultation on implementing legislation already in place to ban most large shops from opening on New Year’s Day. The Christmas Day and New Year’s Day Trading Act (Scotland) Act 2007 prohibits trading in most large shops on Christmas Day and gave powers to the Scottish Government to stop the opening of those shops on New Year’s Day as well, which has never been enacted.

An extensive Usdaw survey of over 1,000 Scottish retail staff, found that:

98% say that stores should be shut on New Year’s Day
Three-quarters feel they spend too little time with friends and family over New Year.
Only 4% are happy to work on New Year’s Day or 2 January.

The full survey results can be viewed at: www.usdaw.org.uk/NYDSurvey

Tracy Gilbert, Usdaw’s Scottish Deputy Divisional Officer, said: “We thank the petitions committee for their unanimous support and decision to progress our petition.

“As Jackie Baillie MSP rightly pointed out, the First Minister agreed to look at Usdaw’s campaign, but that was back in January and the Scottish Government is now saying it’s not the right time to do this. It’s been 13 years since the original legislation was passed, so it is difficult to understand when the Government thinks it would be the right time.

“The strength of feeling among our members is clearly demonstrated by our survey and over 3,000 of them writing to their MSPs asking for support. Retail staff work incredibly hard all year round, but it is particularly busy and stressful throughout December. So they deserve to be able to spend time with family and friends.

“Hogmanay and New Year is a special holiday, but this is not reflected in the experience of many retail workers. Under the Christmas Day and New Year’s Day Trading (Scotland) Act 2007 Scottish Ministers may, by statutory instrument, ban large shops from opening on New Year’s Day, subject to consultation.

“On behalf of Scotland’s retail workers, we are urging the Scottish Government to open that consultation and for MSPs to listen to shopworkers’ concerns about their work and life balance. After everything Scottish shop workers have been through this year, as key workers on the frontline of delivering essential services, they deserve a decent break over New Year.”

What shopworkers say:

You’re tired from working and don’t really relax or enjoy the limited time you get with the kids. Then you start all over again working New Year’s Day too!!!
If, like myself, you have to work Boxing Day and New Year’s Day – it should be paid at least time and half.
As a store manager I have had to work Christmas and New Year. A lot of hard work goes into the weeks leading up. By Christmas Day you are exhausted and then back to work on Boxing Day. This year I also have to work New Year’s Eve, New Year’s Day and on the second.
I am not happy working till 1930 on both Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve. By 4pm our store was fairly empty.
Finishing times on Christmas Eve and Hogmanay are creeping up later, which has a severe impact on family life for retail workers.

Almost £100m lost through unused shopping vouchers during lockdown, Which? reveals

An estimated £97.7 million was lost on shopping vouchers that went unused during lockdown, according to new Which? research.

The consumer champion found a quarter (25%) of UK adults had a shopping voucher – worth £45 on average – that expired during the period when many shops and businesses were forced to close their doors.

Almost half (49%) of those with an expiring voucher said it was automatically extended by the retailer, while one in seven (15%) said they had to request an extension.

However, just over a third (36%) – an estimated 3.1 million – did not receive an extension on their shopping vouchers worth £30 on average, automatically losing all the money they had left. This equates to an estimated £97.7 million across the whole of the UK.

Those from an older demographic were more likely to lose money, with almost half (46%) of those aged over 55 claiming they did not receive an extension for their shopping vouchers.

Around two in five (42%) of those aged 35-54 did not receive an extension either, however this figure dropped to just one in five (20%) of those aged 18-35.

According to the Gift Card and Voucher Association, the gift card industry is worth £6 billion every year.

Many retailers introduced new Covid-19 terms and conditions during lockdown and offered to extend vouchers. While some proactively reached out to customers, others were not so helpful.

One person told Which? they had emailed a retailer regarding vouchers that were due to expire during lockdown, and received a swift response extending the voucher, while another said they were left “disappointed” when they contacted the company who told them “hard luck, basically”.

Which? is advising anyone who had a voucher that expired during lockdown to contact the company to try and get an extension. All retailers should also be reasonable and extend vouchers that customers were not able to use during lockdown.

Anyone considering buying shopping vouchers should be wary, as coronavirus has had a severe financial impact on many retailers – with some big names disappearing from the high street altogether. The possibility of further coronavirus lockdown restrictions in the near future could also make it difficult to spend vouchers.

Adam French, Which? Consumer Rights Expert, said: “Our research suggests consumers may have lost tens of millions of pounds on expired vouchers during lockdown.

“Many retailers have extended shopping vouchers that expired during lockdown, so if you have a voucher you were unable to use it is worth contacting the company.

“Anyone considering buying a voucher should be aware of the risks, as some well-known retailers have collapsed in recent months and further coronavirus restrictions could make it difficult to spend vouchers and gift cards.”

Retail park invests in accessibility facilities

One of Edinburgh’s largest retail parks has invested in new facilities to improve accessibility for adults with serious physical disabilities as it seeks to maintain its essential contribution to the local economy through the Covid-19 pandemic.

Fort Kinnaird has seen a steady return of visitors since non-essential shops were permitted to open at the end of June and has been working to ensure a safe environment for shoppers.

The site has recently opened a Changing Places adult toilet to help people with physical disabilities such as spinal injuries, muscular dystrophy and multiple sclerosis who often need extra equipment and space to allow them to use the toilets safely and comfortably.

There are approximately 2,000 people employed by the various retailers, leisure facilities and food & beverage outlets at Fort Kinnaird, with the site estimated to contribute around £53m (GVA) to the Edinburgh economy.

Local MSP Sarah Boyack visited Fort Kinnaird last week and was given an update on how retailers are opening in a responsible way and what safety protocols are in place.

She also viewed the new Changing Places facilities and learn how they are helping improve accessibility. Fort Kinnaird already offers a Shopmobility service which provides powered scooters and manual wheelchairs to visitors and sensory backpacks for shoppers with autism or sensory difficulties.

Liam Smith, centre director for Fort Kinnaird, said: “Obviously the lockdown has been very hard on the retail sector but we had essential retailers open throughout and since June have steadily seen the rest of the site open up. The measures we have in place around the park have reassured visitors and created a foundation for future success.

“Making the site accessible and welcoming for all is a key part of creating that welcoming atmosphere at Fort Kinnaird and to ensure we can continue to play a key part in supporting the Edinburgh economy.”

Sarah Boyack MSP said: “Scottish retail has been hit hard in recent months, so it is encouraging to see outlets such as Fort Kinnaird work hard to support businesses, enabling people to shop safely as we come out of lockdown and ensuring accessibility for as many shoppers as possible.

“The coming weeks will be crucial to the survival of many businesses and, as local employers, Fort Kinnaird will continue to serve a vital role in Edinburgh’s economic recovery.”

DISCOUNTS FOR STUDENTS

Fort Kinnaird has launched a fortnight of student discounts, running from the 21^st September to the 4^th October, helping students to shop and dine while saving up to 30% off their favourite brands.

This year’s student shopping event is back with a twist, as Fort Kinnaird has adapted its usual one-night annual event to run over two weeks, helping students make the most of some great deals over a longer period of time and in a safe way.

Students will see lots of discounts up for grabs across fashion and beauty as well as the centre’s restaurants, including H&M, Office, Topshop, and more.

Here’s some of the great student discounts on offer*:

• H&M – 20% off

• New Look – 20% off

• Office – 20% off

• Accessorize – 20% off

• Frankie & Benny’s – 20% off

• Elegance Beauty – 10% off all treatments

• Topshop, Topman – 20% off

• Dorothy Perkins (within Outfit) – 20% off

• Typo – 10% off

• Pizza Express – 30% off

• Wagamama – BYOB Student Sundays (20th September – 18th October)

For the full list of student offers at Fort Kinnaird, please visit the website: https://www.fortkinnaird.com/offers?field_offer_type_tid=86

* Terms and conditions apply with each offer, please check with individual stores for more details.

If you’d like to keep up to date with everything that’s going on at Fort Kinnaird, including all of the latest offers and events, visit www.fortkinnaird.com, or find us on Facebook or Twitter. 

7000 jobs to go at M & S

Marks and Spencer announces 7000 job cuts over next three months:

We are today announcing important proposals to further streamline the business both at stores and management level.

As previously outlined Clothing & Home trading in the stores remains well below last year, with online and home delivery strong. It is clear that there has been a material shift in trade and whilst it is too early to predict with precision where a new post Covid sales mix will settle, we must act now to reflect this change.

We have also learnt that we can work more flexibly and productively with more colleagues multi-tasking and transitioning between Food and Clothing & Home. The deployment of our leading store technology package developed in partnership with Microsoft has also enabled us to reduce layers of management and overheads in the support office.

As a result we are today embarking on a multi-level consultation programme which we anticipate will result in a reduction of c. 7,000 roles over the next 3 months. These will include departures in our central support centre, in regional management, and in our UK stores, reflecting the fact that the change has been felt throughout the business.

We expect a significant proportion will be through voluntary departures and early retirement. In line with our longstanding value of treating our people well, we will now begin an extensive programme of communication with colleagues.

Concurrently we expect to create a number of new jobs as we invest in online fulfilment and the new ambient food warehouse and reshape our store portfolio over the course of the year.

The cost of the programme including redundancies will be reflected in a significant adjusting item to be included in the group’s half-year results. The streamlining programme is an important step in delivering on our cost savings programme and ensuring we emerge from the crisis with a lower cost base and a stronger more resilient business.

Chief Executive Steve Rowe commented: “In May we outlined our plans to learn from the crisis, accelerate our transformation and deliver a stronger, more agile business in a world in which some customer habits were changed forever.

“Three months on and our Never the Same Again programme is progressing; albeit the outlook is uncertain and we remain cautious. As part of our Never The Same Again programme to embed the positive changes in ways of working through the crisis, we are today announcing proposals to further streamline store operations and management structures.

“These proposals are an important step in becoming a leaner, faster business set up to serve changing customer needs and we are committed to supporting colleagues through this time.”

Group revenue: constant currency

% change to LY	19 weeks to 8 August 20¹	13 weeks to 8 August 20¹	8 weeks to 8 August 20¹
Clothing & Home	-49.5	-38.5	-29.9
Food	-1.1	2.5	2.5
International	-31.9	-24.6	-19.9
Group	-19.2	-13.2	-10.0
Clothing & Home.com	32.0	42.2	39.2
M&S.com	38.9	46.9	40.7

Discounts now up to 70% OFF at Laura Ashley Edinburgh closing down sale

New discounts have been unveiled at the Laura Ashley closing down sale in Edinburgh, with all fabric and wallpaper 70% off, plus all womenswear and fashion accessories 60% off.

Snap up a homeware bargain with 60% off ready-made curtains and 50% off furniture, bedding, lighting and rugs. Everything in the store is reduced in all departments and everything must go!

All Laura Ashley stores are ‘COVID secure’ and adhere to a strict policy of social distancing with a limited number of shoppers allowed in-store at any time. Card payments are encouraged.

Laura Ashley began in the 1950s, quickly becoming famous for its unique printed fabrics. Over time, the brand grew to become the household name of today, synonymous with quality fashion, interiors and home furnishings.

Laura Ashley stores will continue to trade until further notice.

A spokesman for Laura Ashley said, “There are some amazing bargains to be found in-store, especially with these new discounts. Popular items are selling fast and customers are advised to take advantage of these discounts while stock lasts.”

Laura Ashley stores reopen … for Closing Down sales

British retail heritage brand, Laura Ashley has confirmed that its Edinburgh stores, located on George Street and at Straiton Retail Park, re-open today to commence the closing down sale, with dramatic reductions on fashion.

Laura Ashley’s extensive closing down sale launches with at least 50% off fashion in-store and online, plus all furniture now 30% off. Everything has been reduced and has to go, including stock being cleared from the warehouse. Customers are encouraged to take advantage of these fantastic discounts while stocks last.

The stores are ‘COVID secure’ and adhere to a strict policy of social distancing with a limited number of shoppers allowed in-store at any time, as well as regular deep cleaning. Card payments are encouraged.

Despite the store closures that will follow the ‘everything must go’ sale, the Laura Ashley brand will remain online (www.lauraashley.com) and at retailers nationwide.

The Edinburgh stores will continue to trade until further notice.

A spokesman for Laura Ashley said, “There are some fantastic deals to be found in-store, as everything is now reduced and, with at least 50% off fashion, we expect clothing ranges to sell out fast. We are extremely mindful of the current COVID crisis and customers can be assured that the store will be COVID secure.”

Which? launches tool to tackle profiteers

Which? has developed a simple tool for people to report coronavirus profiteering amid concerns that price-gougers are getting away with hiking the prices of essential items.

The consumer champion has uncovered widespread problems with basic products being sold for hugely inflated prices on online marketplaces such as Amazon Marketplace and eBay – and there are concerns that similar behaviour could be happening on other sites and in shops up and down the country.

These practices may have left key workers and charities struggling to get essential products they need or forced to pay extortionate prices.

Which? spoke to a charity that helps provide hundreds of meals to elderly and vulnerable people – demand for this vital service has gone up since the Covid-19 crisis. However the price of essential items to keep its employees and vulnerable clients safe, such as antibacterial probe wipes, which the charity has only been able to buy in the high quantities they need from eBay, has more than doubled since the crisis.

The Competition and Markets Authority has set up a dedicated Covid-19 taskforce, and reports shared using the tool will help the regulator to establish the scale of the problem and take action against the worst offenders. Which? is also calling for emergency legislation to give regulators the tools to swiftly crack down on price-gouging on certain essential products during this crisis, and any future ones.

The CMA and Chartered Trading Standards Institute have both raised serious concerns about problems with price-gouging and the Prime Minister has also warned traders against “exploiting people’s need” during a national emergency.

Which? has heard reports from hundreds of consumers that unscrupulous sellers have been taking advantage of the situation and its investigations have uncovered huge price hikes on products such as handwash, cleaning products and baby formula.

Which? experts have found Dettol bleach and cleaning sprays being sold by third-party sellers with price hikes of almost 1000 per cent more than the typical price on eBay with evidence of dozens of purchases being made at these prices.

Researchers also encountered sterilising fluid for baby bottles for more than 10 times the original price by a seller on Amazon and a bundle of one handwash and one antibacterial gel for £30 on eBay, instead of the £3.50 it would usually cost.

Some shoppers have felt pressured into buying these overpriced products because of a lack of alternative options available, including older and more vulnerable people who need access to vital hygiene products such as hand sanitiser.

One told Which?: “I’m disabled and struggle to leave my home, but the current crisis is forcing me to go out and struggle to get essentials when I normally get as much online as I can.

“My trust in buying from online marketplaces has been shattered, some items are fine if I find it at a reasonable price, but others I can’t trust as they’re either gouged, possibly diluted and therefore useless, or it’s a scam listing and the item never existed to begin with.”

Another said: “I paid £19.80 plus £5.25 for post and packaging for 2 x 250ml of hand sanitiser from a seller on eBay. Outrageous price but we are a captive audience and it was the cheapest I could find. Someone is getting very rich from this pandemic.”

Which? has also heard numerous reports of price-gouging at bricks and mortar retailers including pharmacies.

Which? is calling for the government to introduce specific legislation to stop unjustifiable price hikes of essential items during times of emergency, as well as requiring online marketplaces to ensure compliance on their sites or face enforcement action.

New legislation would also give the UK a head start in tackling price-gouging during any future emergencies. The absence of legislation has made it harder to take action on this issue swiftly and left the UK trailing behind other countries that already have laws to combat price-gouging during crises.

In the meantime, Which? believes online marketplaces need to bring in stricter, more effective controls and policies to tackle price gouging, and is encouraging the CMA to take strong enforcement action using its existing powers where appropriate.

Sue Davies, Head of Consumer Protection at Which?, said: “It is unacceptable for people to be left at the mercy of unscrupulous sellers during a national emergency. We’re calling for people to report opportunistic coronavirus profiteers via our tool so that we can press home the need for swift action and put an end to price-gouging on basic goods.

“The government, working with the CMA, needs to step in with emergency legislation to crack down on price-gouging and keep the price of essential items reasonable during a crisis.”

Link for consumers to submit reports to Which?’s price-gouging tool: https://www.which.co.uk/pricegouging

Update from Sainsbury’s Chief Executive Mike Coupe

I’ve written to you regularly over the past few weeks as we adapt the way we work to keep our shelves full while keeping you and our colleagues safe.

We continue to make changes in line with government guidelines and in response to feedback from you and our colleagues.

I am writing today to tell you about measures we are taking to protect our customers and colleagues and to update you on our product availability and on how we continue to support our elderly and vulnerable customers.

Keeping our customers and colleagues safe

Keeping you and our colleagues safe is our number one priority. This week we have brought in further measures to help you keep a safe distance from other customers and from our colleagues when you are visiting our stores.

We have queuing systems in place outside stores and ask you to please queue at a safe distance of two metres apart. Please also try to keep a safe distance from other customers and from our colleagues when you are doing your shop. We have placed clear markings on shop floors to help you know what a safe distance is.

From today, we are asking everyone to please only send one adult per household to our shops.

This helps us keep people a safe distance apart and also helps to reduce queues to get into stores. Our store teams will be asking groups with more than one adult to choose one adult to shop and will ask other adults to wait. Children are of course welcome if they are not able to stay at home.

To help keep our colleagues safe while serving customers, we now have screens at most manned checkouts. In the next few days we will have finished installing the screens across all manned checkouts in every supermarket, convenience store and Argos collection point.

Feeding the nation

We have been working hard with our suppliers to improve our product availability. Most people are now just buying what they need for themselves and their families. This means we now often have stock on the shelves all day and at the end of the day.

People have been queuing to get into our stores when they open in the mornings, but customers are now finding they can shop at any time of the day and feel confident in finding most of what they need.

As stock continues to build, we have been reviewing whether we still need to limit the number of items people buy. I am pleased to tell you that we will start to remove limits from Sunday. Limits will remain in place on the most popular items which include UHT milk, pasta and tinned tomatoes.

We have removed limits from Easter eggs immediately as we know families often want to buy more than three and we have plenty of these in all stores and online.

Supporting elderly and vulnerable customers

We are continuing to prioritise elderly and vulnerable customers for online delivery slots and our customer Careline has helped 170,000 customers, who will now get priority access to online delivery. In total, we have offered priority booking to more than 450,000 elderly or vulnerable customers.

I apologise to customers who have been struggling to get through to our online team. The team is working at full capacity and we are doing our very best to get to people as quickly as possible.

We are expanding our groceries online service as much and as quickly as we can. Two weeks ago we had 370,000 online grocery slots available. By the end of next week we will have increased this to 600,000 across home delivery and click and collect and we will continue to add more capacity over the coming weeks.

Supporting our colleagues

Our colleagues really are doing a remarkable job. I have been into a number of stores over the past few days and have been struck by their dedication and their determination to do the best job for our customers. These are very uncertain times and our colleagues really are on the frontline.

We are doing everything we can to keep our colleagues safe and this includes supporting them if they need to self-isolate. Where colleagues are considered vulnerable, we are paying them in full for the recommended 12 weeks self-isolation, including colleagues who live with extremely vulnerable family members who the government has asked to shield for 12 weeks.

I am personally committed to ensuring the safety of our colleagues and we will continue to do the right thing to protect them throughout this time.

I have been delighted to see that customers have told us they think colleague friendliness is at an all-time high at the moment. I think this is real testament both to the hard work of our colleagues and also the fantastic recognition they are getting for the vital role they are playing throughout this crisis.

Thank you for treating our colleagues with the respect and kindness they deserve. They really are doing their best to serve our customers well in these challenging times.

Best wishes

Mike