What: The Dorotheen Quartier is celebrating its fifth anniversary as a centre of retail, gastronomy, urban life and tourism for Stuttgart.

Why it is important: The Breuninger flagship, located in the Dorotheen Quartier, will celebrate the anniversary of the district through special promotions, atmospheric decoration, live musical entertainment, culinary attractions, guest speakers and more.

In addition to the main events, guests can take part in an augmented reality treasure hunt and win exclusive prizes. fYRA Collective will open a pop-up kicking off the celebration from September 30th to October 1st.

Breuninger flagship celebrates DOQU Festival

What: The Mall Group received a plaque for the Royal Forest Department's helper in the field of community forest promotion and development for the year 2022.

Why it is important: The Minister of Natural Resources and Environment recognizes the company's efforts to reduce its emissions to carbon neutral.

The group plans to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 20%- 25% by 2030 based on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), development guidelines.

The Mall Group receives sustainability plaque

What: The new offerings will be available on manor.ch as well as in 5 shop-in-shops in Manor department stores.

Why it is important: The partnership will allow Manor to expand its brand offerings (including Nike, Vans, UGG, Dr. Martens, Hugo Boss, Timberland, Geox, Clarks) and benefit from Aeschbach's established reputation in Switzerland.

Manor customers will benefit from a considerable expansion of the online assortment on manor.ch (via the marketplace) with a vast choice of shoes for women, men and children and by 5 Aeschbach shop-in-shops in Basel, Geneva, Lausanne, Lugano and Vevey.

The Aeschbach company currently has 15 own points of sale and offers more than 3,000 new products a year in the categories of shoes, fashion accessories and clothing for women, men and children.

From the second quarter of 2023, 5 new shop-in-shops will open in Manor stores.

Manor partners with footwear retailer Aeschbach

What: The agreement allows the Spanish company to take advantage of the global e-commerce network to boost its expansion in Russia and Central European countries;

Why it is important: El Corte Inglés and AliExpress have taken a new step in their alliance by reaching an agreement that will allow the Group's international expansion in Russia, Poland and Central Europe and will boost online sales in these markets.

In this way, El Corte Inglés strengthens its alliance with AliExpress by incorporating six new fashion brands that are sold through the Alibaba Group marketplace. Unit, one of the six brands, has become very popular among younger customers, positioning itself among the favorite brands of AliExpress users in Spain.

Alibaba will use the logistics infrastructure of El Corte Inglés.

Eduardo Sotillos , Director of Purchasing at El Corte Inglés, explains that "we have always worked to offer customers the best quality in products and services. The collaboration with AliExpress is a lever to boost online sales, and especially the expansion in the international market. For its part, AliExpress will be able to take advantage of our logistics infrastructure in Spain."

El Corte Inglés strengthens its alliance with AliExpress

What: As community restrictions are lifting and schools and offices are back face-to-face SM has seen a surge in crowds coming to stores and malls.

Why it is important: Trends have shifted in terms of consumers leaning more towards 'athleisure,' more people are biking to work in response to the trend of health and wellness trend, as well as sustainability.

SM has addressed the shift in sustainability by providing the SM Green Finds Initiative, a collection of sustainable products.

There is a resurgence of fashion, leading to more energized spending; SM has ended the second quarter with 95% of pre-pandemic sales.

Press Release: SM sees a resurgence of fashion spending

Media: SM sees a resurgence of fashion spending

What: Lafayette Gourmet onboards 7 new restaurant concepts from young and trendy chefs.

Why it is important: The new restaurant space is 1000 sqm and is located on Lafayette Gourmet's first floor, previously dedicated to home goods. This initiative shows how department stores are increasingly developing services and experiences.

Galeries Lafayette Haussmann expands its restaurant offerings 

What: The new [Re]vendez ([Re]sell) will allow customers to take used clothes back to Toulouse, Nice Cap 3000, Lyon Part-Dieu, Annecy and Nantes stores. They will receive a store gift voucher in exchange.

Why it is important: After the opening of the [Re]store department in Haussmann store a year ago, Galeries Lafayette continues developing CSR initiatives, this time outside of Paris.

Galeries Lafayette's resale service in provincial stores

What: El Corte Inglés' Malaga location welcomes the Swedish brand Foreo specializing in skincare technology.

Why it is important: Malaga is a priority city for El Corte Inglés due to its economic business, cultural and touristic dynamism strengthening retail and promoting growth for the company.

El Corte Inglés enriches the customer experience through the dedicated space for Foreo, a 13-square-meter corner which prioritizes testing treatments and products. The brand sells a variety of beauty products and gadgets from face cleansers and massagers to toothbrushes and light therapy devices.

Foreo skincare corner at El Corte Inglés

What: Breuninger is offering customers to participate in a variety of events to kick off the autumn/winter season with an open-air runway show.

Why it is important: Together with the Kö-Bogen, the fashion retailer is inviting Düsseldorf customers to late-night shopping, promotional campaigns and DJ sounds on Friday and Saturday, September 2nd and 3rd.

Seven fashion shows with big brands will present on a 60-metre-long catwalk in front of the Düsseldorf flagship store.

Breuninger's fashion spectacle for the AW season

What: The luxury retailer SKP is stepping out of Beijing to open its first location in Southern China in another first-tier city.

Why it is important: SKP is known for running the world's most profitable mall, SKP Beijing, making its plans a likely motivator for luxury brands to move into the dormant commercial area.

The Guangzhou market has been dominated by Taikoo Hui in recent years, which brought in luxury players like Celine and Balenciaga just this year. SKP's newest venture is likely to bring even more luxury brands to the Southern Chinese region.

At the closing ceremony of the eighth Guangzhou Annual Investment Conference China and the first Global Unicorn CEO Forum, SKP's parent company Beijing Hualian Group signed the contract with the Guangzhou government to seal the deal for its plans. The government is hoping to revive the untapped retail zone. Luxury shopping malls, MixC and Taikoo Li, also unveiled plans to open malls in Guangzhou at the conference.

An opening date is yet to be revealed for SKP Guangzhou. However, SKP is set to open a southwest retail hub in Chengdu later this year as well as a location in Wuhan next year.

Chinese luxury retail giant SKP to open in Guangzhou

What: SM subsidiary 2GO demonstrates its commitment to marine preservation through coastal cleanup events.

Why it is important: Hundreds of employees across 15 sites throughout the country came together for International Coastal Cleanup Day by staging their own activities.

SM Mall of Asia also held an activity for cleanup led by SM Cares, the corporate responsibility arm of SM Prime Holdings.

SM participates in coastal cleanup

What: Galeries Lafayette releases a film advertisement for television and online featuring the magasin du boulevard Haussman location.

Why it is important: The commercial marks a return to television advertisements and a shift in marketing tactics.

The one-minute ad remains in line with the shorter video formats reportedly a necessary length to retain customer attention while incorporating a cinematic style of commercial advertising rarely seen today. The ad features the iconic architecture of the Galeries Lafayette grand magasin located on boulevard Haussman in Paris. The video uses darker lighting and graphic editing to create a whimsical journey through the store and e-commerce site.

Galeries Lafayette returns to TV ads

What:  Due to increased costs, Falabella's Q2 earnings reports showed a 51.7% drop year-over-year for net profit.

Why it is important: Falabella cites margin pressures in Chile and increased expenses caused by both local and global complex scenarios having affected the net profit for the company.

Additional expenses related to the "development of capacities" across digital platforms have also contributed to the year-over-year decrease. The financial report noted currency variations as a key factor in the profit drop as well.

The company's profit for the quarter was 65.12 billion pesos (70.8 million USD), and its second-quarter net revenue grew 16.1% to 3.08 trillion pesos (3.3 billion USD). Falabella's EBITDA fell 31.7% to 245 billion pesos in the quarter, missing the Refinitiv forecast of 316 billion pesos.

Falabella Q2 reports -51.7% for net profit 

What: SM Investments Corporation has been awarded the title of 'Hall of Famer' for the category of Corporate Governance by the Asia Responsible Enterprise Awards 2022 (AREA).

Why it is important: The award recognizes SM Investments' transparency in reporting governance practices in their annual report, while also safeguarding integrity in financial reporting, promoting ethical decision making, respecting the rights of shareholders and renumerating fairly and responsibly.

AREA is the most prominent CSR recognition program across Asia initiated by Enterprise Asia. As a company that touches many different industries in the Philippines, the honour reinforces the efforts made toward CSR and sustainability by SM Investments Corporation.

SM joins Good Governance Hall of Fame

What: Alpha Southeast Asia magazine awards released its 12th Annual Institutional Investor Poll for which SM ranked in the top tiers across four categories.

Why it is important: SM won the number one placement for 'Most Organised Investor Relations' and 'Strongest Adherence to Corporate Governance' both of which the company has won in past years, its eleventh and eighth wins respectively.

The awards are based on a poll of industry votes from more than 557 investors and analysts across Southeast Asia as well as the US and Europe.  In addition to the number ranking in the previously mentioned categories, the company also ranked among the top for 'Best Senior Management IR Support' and 'Most Consistent Dividend Policy.'

The awards recognize SM's commitment and understanding of the importance of good corporate governance practices for long-term growth, sustainability and success.

SM wins 4 awards 

What: The Mall Group and Siam Commercial Bank celebrate the 4th anniversary of the SCB M Visa card for clients.

Why it is important: The Mall Group is celebrating a successful four-year-long partnership with SCB in which customers have been able to receive benefits from their SCB M Visa card.

In celebration, the Mall Group is rewarding customers by offering an array of discounts and promotions for card users to redeem points and win prizes.

The Mall Group celebrates 4th anniversary of SCB partnership

What: The Manor Cultural Prize 2023 announces the seven winners whose exhibitions will be presented across the cantons of Switzerland next year.

Why it is important: Manor is celebrating the 40th anniversary of the contemporary art award, the Prix Culturel Manor, which highlights emerging artists in painting, sculpture, video art, photography, performance, installations and more.

Seven museums in seven different cantons have deliberated and announced the winners. The Kunstmuseum Basel selected local visual artist Gina Folly. Geneva's Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MAMCO) selected the artist Lou Masduraud.  In Graubünden at the Bündner Kunstmuseum in Chur, the artist Linda Semadeni was selected. The Kunstmuseum in Saint-Gall will exhibit the first solo exhibition of the artist Juliette Uzor. At the Museum zu Allerheiligen in Schaffhausen, Reto Müller was selected for the award. The Valais Art Museum in the city of Sion will host an exhibition by the artist Aurélie Strumans. Finally, the canton of Zurich's Kunst Museum Winterthur selected Jan Vorisek whose exhibition will be accompanied by the artists first publication.

In 2023, the exhibitions will be displayed across Switzerland to uplift emerging artists and enrich Swiss culture.

Manor announces 2023 Cultural Prize winners

What: El Palacio de Hierro releases a film commercial with futuristic visuals to demonstrate the mindset and goals of the company.

Why it is important: As AR and VR grow, El Palacio de Hierro has released a commercial expressing their mission to be a future-forward company.

The commercial is set on a spaceship and features a man and a woman using holograms and virtual technology to try on and materialize different apparel items and accessories. Some examples include a hologram of different constellations turning into diamond earrings and a laser placing holographic eyeliner onto a woman's eyes. While the visuals are done by special effects the products are part of the real assortment of El Palacio de Hierro.

The campaign is comprised of the film advertisement and a lookbook of cool-toned images also set on the imagined space 'palace'. There are also behind-the-scenes images and a short video showing how the department store accomplished the filming of the commercial.

Finally, the campaign encourages social media interaction with the hashtag #ElFuturoEsUnPalacio which means 'The Future is a Palace.'

El Palacio de Hierro's futuristic commercial campaign

What: SM Investments Corporation reported its consolidated net income increased 27% to PHP25.5 billion in the January to June period from PHP20.1 billion in the same period last year.

Why it is important: Despite inflation, consumer spending across all categories and formats along with increased foot traffic as restrictions lowered led to SM Retail reporting revenues of PHP163.7 billion, an increase of 18% from PHP138.2 billion in the same period last year.

Retail net income was higher by 91%, PHP7.0 billion from PHP3.6 billion in the previous period, benefitting from cost reductions and efficiencies across all formats. Renewed interest in shopping for fashion-related items and dining out in mall restaurants increased foot traffic.

Over the past six months ending in June 2022, SM Retail and its affiliates added 147 stores. This brought the total number of stores to 3,336 (69 SM Stores, 1,543 Specialty Retail, 62 SM Supermarket, 52 SM Hypermarket, 214 Savemore, 1,320 Alfamart and 75 WalterMart stores).

Total assets were at PHP1.4 trillion. The gearing ratio stood at 39% net debt to 61% equity. In terms of net earnings, banks accounted for 48%, followed by property at 26%, retail at 20% and portfolio investments at 6%. Consolidated revenues rose 23% to PHP238.5 billion in the first half from PHP193.5 billion in the same period last year.

SM Retail reports 91% increase in net income

What: Breuninger is one of three retailers to be the first selected by COS' as part of their new wholesale strategy.

Why it is important: COS has expanded into wholesale for the first time partnering with Breuninger to expand their reach in Europe through the retailer's e-commerce platform. Breuninger will be able to improve their online range with this unique long-term partnership.

Starting in October, a selected assortment of the COS collections will be available on breuninger.com in a total of nine European markets - Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Poland, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Spain and Italy.

Breuninger to carry COS online

What: Galeries Lafayette is giving out 3 exclusive digital wearables in a drawing that will take place on social media.

Why it is important: NTFs are revolutionizing the fashion world allowing for endless virtual opportunities.

In partnership with EGONLAB and Arianee, Galeries Lafayette has launched a contest in win 3 different digital wearables: a wonder bow, bubble shirt, and mushroom boots. Winners will be able to "wear" these items in immersive worlds such as The Sandbox Or Decentraland. This opportunity allows winners to take advantage of unique perks like direct push messages to their wallets, evolutive metadata on Polygon Technology with time stamp features, and Ethereum wallet access from the Arianee app. This new digital fashion trend is more fun, interactive, unique, and makes everything and anything possible in the metaverse playground.

Galeries Lafayette introduces digital fashion 

What: The Mall Group was honored for their entrepreneurial excellence by the Asia Pacific Enterprise Awards 2022.

Why it is important: The Mall Group received two awards from the Asia Pacific Enterprise Awards (APEA) 2022. The Mall Group was awarded two titles, the Corporate Excellence Award and the Inspirational Brand Award, for the retail category. These awards highlight the Mall Group's successful management and excellence in the category of retail. The Inspirational Design Award specifically celebrates the Mall Group's ability to create or reform a brand. The Mall Group acknowledges their commitment to customers as a contributor to having received this recognition.

The Mall Group receives 2 awards 

What: El Palacio de Hierro ends the first six months of 2022 with a 36% increase in sales.

Why it is important: Thanks to their omnichannel strategy, El Palacio de Hierro has seen impressive increases in the group's turnover and online sales post-pandemic.

The company's EBITDA stood at 2,495 million pesos (119.1 million euros) in the period, 133% more than in the same period of 2021 and 8% above the first half of 2021. Digital sales rose 31% in the first six months of 2022.

El Palacio de Hierro ended the 2021 financial year with year-over-year growth in sales of 46.4% exceeding the level of sales prior to the pandemic by 6.2%.

El Palacio de Hierro beats pre-pandemic sales

What: Shareholders vote to pass all motions tabled by the board in 2021, notably approval of the 2021 management report, financial statements, non-financial statements and earnings appropriation.

Why it is important: The Annual General Meeting highlighted El Corte Inglés' 22% increase in revenue for FY21 and decreased debt thanks to cash flow improvements and agreements made with new partners. This is the group's lowest level of debt since 2007.

Ignacio Garralda, chairman of Grupo Mutua, attended the Annual General Meeting for the first time as director. The deal reached between the two companies, effective as of May, included the insurance company taking a seat on the El Corte Inglés board (representative of Mutua's 8% stake and purchase of 51% of El Corte Inglés Insurance Group). Shareholders also ratified Javier Rodríguez-Arias's appointment to the El Corte Inglés board via co-option.

The retail business was again the Group's main growth engine, with fashion sales jumping 49%. Also delivering healthy increases were home (+15%) and electronics, culture and leisure (+11.5%). The Annual General Meeting overall highlighted a positive horizon for El Corte Inglés with the means to execute plans for future investments and reach sustainability goals.

El Corte Inglés' positive outlook at Annual General Meeting