Archived blog posts (2009 to 2018) about shops on the high street and online, by North East-based retail consultant Graham Soult
Though navigating the economic downturn continues to challenge many stores, one of the fascinating subtexts has been the growth of new independent retailers, sometimes borne out...
Read more....Clas Ohlson, the Swedish ‘modern hardware’ retailer, has launched its first loyalty scheme – the ‘Club Clas’ customer club – in its home market, with...
Read more....Ponden Home, the soft furnishings and accessories retailer, has opened a new shop in Gateshead town centre, taking the unit in Jackson Street that had been empty...
Read more....On the same day as the ONS has revealed an unexpected fall in UK retail sales during a snowy January, one retailer – the Swedish hardware...
Read more....After helping retailers “get content with their web content” at last year’s Autumn Fair International, I’m delighted to have been invited back to give the...
Read more....If one theme has emerged clearly from my Retailer Q&A series to date, it’s that modern retail businesses can’t really afford to ignore the Internet: whether...
Read more....Just one week after Midlands Co-op announced the closure of its department stores, Lincolnshire Co-op has revealed that it too is to exit non-food.
Read more....With Walmsley’s currently teetering on the high street, and chains like Habitat, Land of Leather and MFI having collapsed in the last few years, the...
Read more....Back in July, I discussed the fragmented and increasingly competitive bathrooms market, raising the question of “what independent bathroom retailers – whether offline, online, or...
Read more....Since its launch less than three years ago, the private sales etailer Achica – badged as the “members-only luxury lifestyle store” – has been something of a quiet...
Read more....While former Woolworths up and down the country now play host to Poundland and B&M Bargains – with just the occasional Waitrose – the Surrey town...
Read more....Though I get to work with plenty of bathroom retailers through my Home Interiors Directory website, it isn’t a sector of the retail industry I’ve really blogged...
Read more....Middlesbrough had some retail good news on Saturday, as a new store opened its doors in the town’s former TJ Hughes premises – following on...
Read more....Tamworth’s new John Lewis at Home opened its doors on Wednesday (12 October), eight months after I broke the news of its impending arrival. The 42,000 sq ft...
Read more....If the people of Newcastle were still unaware of Clas Ohlson this morning they shouldn’t be by the end of the day. Adding to the...
Read more....Everything seems to be gearing up nicely for the opening of Newcastle’s Clas Ohlson store, just two weeks today on Wednesday 24 August. The Northumberland...
Read more....It’s hard to dispute that the last couple of weeks has been a torrid time for the UK high street, with a succession of well-known...
Read more....Following the confirmation, in April, that John Lewis will indeed be opening one of its ‘At Home’ stores in Tamworth, work on site seems to be...
Read more....Things have been pretty quiet on the Clas Ohlson front since the Swedish hardware retailer announced the latest stage of its UK expansion, back in...
Read more....With the collapse of Lewis’s and Robbs owner Vergo Retail being one of the year’s major stories at Soult’s Retail View, it seems fitting to mark...
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