Retail Appointment May 2018 TRAP_May 2018_Digital Edition | Page 10

NEWS IN REVIEW
SPRING 2018
£2bn on delivery
subscriptions
UK consumers are spending over
£2billion every year on delivery
subscription services, according
to a new study. The research con-
ducted by delivery management company
Whistl found that the most popular sub-
scription service was Amazon Prime, with
61.4% of those who took part in the
survey saying they had signed up to it.
Other popular subscriptions were revealed
as Graze at 12.3%, Next Unlimited at
9.7%, ASOS Premier at 8.8%, Pact Coffee
at 8.5% and Glossybox at 7.8%.
The reasons given by survey participants
for signups to subscription services in-
cluded convenience followed by value for
money, although one in five of those
signed up to a subscription admitted to
not making use of the benefits offered by
the service.
The study also found that one in five of
those polled said they refused to shop
with retailers who did not offer subscrip-
tion services while 48.9% said they had
purchased items they would not otherwise
have bought if they did not have a sub-
scription.
Melanie Darvall, director of marketing and
communications at Whistl, said: “It’s great
to see the popularity in monthly subscrip-
tion services and how they are benefitting
both businesses of all sizes and the con-
sumers who sign up to them.
“It seems the key to making your sub-
scription service a success is finding the
balance and making your offering benefi-
cial for both parties.”
Harvey Nichols is opening a new
flagship store in Doha, the capital
of Qatar. The new store boasts 80,000sq
ft of retail space over three floors, and is
located in Doha Festival City shopping
centre, showcasing an edit of wom-
enswear, menswear, accessories, beauty,
childrenswear and lifestyle departments.
“We are delighted to be opening a store
in Doha,” co-chief operating officers
Daniela Rinaldi and Manju Malhotra said.
“We know there is an appetite for our brand
in the region so we are excited to be able
to offer the discerning customer in Qatar
our exclusive edit of designer brands.”
Harvey Nichols’ new Doha flagship –
opened in partnership with Saleh Al
Hamad Al Mana Group of Companies –
Perfume retailer The Fragrance
Shop has increased its full year
like-for-like sales by 6% after
luxury fragrances helped boost
trade. In total, sales increased by 14%
on continuing trading activities as the re-
tailer benefited from the popularity of NPD
and launches from brands such as Chanel,
Jean Paul Gaultier and Emporio Armani.
The Doha store also expands the British re-
tailer’s network which covers key locations
across UK and Ireland, as well as interna-
tional markets such as Hong Kong, Dubai,
Riyadh, Istanbul, Ankara and Kuwait.
“Harvey Nichols will add a great shopping
experience to Qataris and expats alike,”
Al Mana Group chairman and managing
director Hisham Saleh Al Mana said.
“We truly believe in the growth of our
beloved country and with the FIFA 2022
World Cup, Qatar is paving the way to
becoming the center of attraction in the
Gulf region.”
grance Shop, said: “We are delighted to
have achieved another outstanding year,
given the challenging economic climate.
Our growth highlights the fragrance
sector’s resilience with NPD and block-
buster launches from brands such as
Scandal, Chanel Gabrielle, Jean Paul
Gaultier and Emporio Armani Stronger
With You/Because It’s You by far the top
performing launches.
Operating 214 stores across the UK, The
Fragrance Shop said ongoing expansion
in its store portfolio drove further growth
with 33 openings in the year. Meanwhile,
online sales rose by 27% year-on-year.
Sanjay Vadera, chief executive of The Fra- "The customer is at the heart of every-
thing we do and we are always evolving
our customer strategy to ensure we con-
tinue to delight and exceed their expec-
tations in the retail landscape.”
Smiggle’s UK sales and profits
skyrocket. Smiggle saw strong sales Adidas sees profit and sales
uptick. Adidas has recorded an 18.6 per
and profits in its UK operations last year,
thanks to an ambitious expansion scheme
and soaring online sales. cent increase in net income for its first
quarter of the year, compared with same
period in 2017. The retailer’s net income
rose to €540 million (£476 million) in 2018,
boosted by €5.5 billion (£4.84 billion) in
quarterly sales.
Accounts filed at Companies House show
Smiggle recording a 92 per cent increase
in revenues to £55.7 million in the year to
July 2017.
Also, pre-tax profit rose from £3.8 million
to £10.8 million, which John Cheston
(Smiggle group managing director) said
was driven by online sales.
Smiggle currently has around 130 UK out-
lets, including its recently-opened Oxford
Street flagship in London.
The retailer had been targeting 200 stores
in the UK as part of efforts to hit AUD $200
million (£112 million) in revenue by 2019.
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was selected because Qatar has one of
the world’s highest levels of disposable
income and Qataris are the biggest
buyers of luxury goods in the Middle East.
The German brand also enjoyed an oper-
ating gross margins uplift of 1.8 per cent
to 51.1 per cent, while operating margins
increased by 1.8 per cent to 13.4 per cent.
Online sales was the fastest-growing
channel, with a 27 per cent year-on-year
rise in volumes for the quarter.
The company’s North America market
was the star performer, with 21 per cent
growth, followed by Asia-Pacific which
grew 15 per cent. Revenues in Western
Europe only grew by five per cent, but this
was in line with market expectations.
May 2018