What: For the 2022 holiday season, Dior will strengthen its relationship with Harrods with a multi-pronged event lasting from November 10 to January 3.

Why it is important: Dior traditionally stages a summer pop-up in the London department store but is set to take over Harrod’s iconic Christmas displays, showcasing 44 windows, staging events on every floor, displaying the Dior compass rose in lights on the façade, along with a pop-up café.

Dior will launch a dedicated app for visitors to book slots for their exhibition that features small-scale reproductions of their Paris flagship, founder Christian Dior’s childhood home and Château de La Colle Noire. Harrods will carry exclusives and pre-launches alongside the 15-minute immersive Dior walkthrough attraction.

Dior to take over 44 windows at Harrods

What: The new Jown Lewis slogan (for all life’s moments) is not as disconnected as it seems.

Why it is important:  Every retailer is revamping its positioning and brand perception as the competition in the online space increasing, forcing retailers to capture an “audience”, or, as the FT suggests between the lines, inventing such an audience.

No more experience: with its new slogan, John Lewis aims to be the first “moments-based retailer”. What does this mean? If in the past customers were spending on holidays and festival, now John Lewis addresses customers who want to spend more on everyday moments to make them special.

The slogan change (the previous one was “never knowingly undersold”) was a strategic move, as it forced John Lewis to align with lower prices from the competition including online. But the FT argues that such a change is also a way for John Lewis to sell more small products more often. This is smart at a moment when inflation and consequences of the Brexit are making UK customers more price-conscious, but still willing to enjoy their moments. The FT wonders if such a strategy can work out.

What John Lewis gets right about British shoppers 

What: Following the announcement of the death of Queen Elizabeth II on September 8th, the UK will enter a morning period that is expected to cost the country billions.

Why it is important: London Fashion Week is still expected to take place from the 16th to the 20th of September, with Burberry bowing out as a mark of respect and the British Fashion Council ceasing communications during the ten-day mourning period.

The funeral is expected to take place on the 18th or 19th which would mean store closures across the country as well as fashion show rescheduling. Prior to the news of the Queen’s death, London was preparing for its biggest fashion week since before the pandemic.

Selfridges has closed its doors since the announcement of the Queen’s passing and will reopen this weekend. It is likely that the other major UK department stores will follow their lead.

The ten-day mourning period will cause serious business delays and closures leading to lost revenues and logistical hiccups that may cause a cascade of issues for Fashion Month and British department stores.

UK business to halt following the Queen’s death - Source 1

UK business to halt following the Queen’s death - Source 2

What: Pinduoduo, a popular Chinese e-commerce enterprise, has released a new app intended to leverage its supplier network and compete with Shein in the fast-fashion market.

Why it is important: Temu has already been downloaded over 400,000 times, making its threat to Shein even greater.

Backed by the Chinese retail giant Pinduoduo, success will be easier for the newly released platform. The company allows groups of users to purchase goods at a lower cost, connecting merchants directly with buyers while sellers bear the shipping costs. The company’s newest app, Temu, is primarily focused on apparel, home goods and electronics. Like Shein, Temu hosts thousands of new products daily at an unbelievably low price.

Parent company Pinduoduo helps Temu through its existing relationships with suppliers, making it easier to upload new and of-the-moment styles that rival that of Shein.

Temu: Shein’s new rival

What: Deloitte expects holiday retail sales to have lower growth this year.

Why it is important: Retail sales are set to increase as a result of higher prices, which will allow for the potential to further drive e-commerce sales as consumers will look to online deals to maximize their spending.

As inflation increases, retailers can expect consumers to continue to shift how they spend their holiday budget this upcoming season; inflation will help raise dollar sales, but retailers will see less growth in sales volume.

Deloitte’s holiday shopping season predictions

What: Cost inflation across grocery and general merchandise has greatly affected the retail group’s profitability with a decline of 99-million-pounds compared to its 69-million-pound profit last year.

Why it is important: Despite the loss, John Lewis will continue to support its full-time staff with a one-off cost-of-living payment of 500 pounds on top of the free food promised to employees during the holiday season.

The pandemic had artificially inflated shopping basket sizes which have since plummeted as consumers’ behaviour has shifted due to inflation. Waitrose sales dropped by 5% and operating profit fell by 93-million-pounds. Fashion however performed well over the first half driven by a return to in-store shopping, growing 25% compared to the previous year. The group’s bargain value own brand Anyday saw a 28% rise in sales as customers began to look for better deals during the later part of H1.

John Lewis is prioritizing its partners by doubling financial assistance and increasing entry-level pay by 4% which will cost 10-million-pounds in the second half. Overall, the retailer plans to invest a total of 45-million-pounds to help partners this year.

John Lewis sales did increase over the first half due to a return to in-store shopping post-pandemic, maintaining an operating profit of 295-million-pounds compared to last year.

John Lewis sees a 99-million-pound loss in H1

What: The Mexican high-end department store has utilized a surplus of cash to diversify assets geographically by purchasing 293.8 million USD of Nordstrom stock.

Why it is important: Nordstrom has enacted a 'Poison Pill' plan to make a hostile takeover more difficult and expensive by allowing current shareholders to buy at an extreme discount ultimately diluting the pursuer's stake.

Liverpool is now one of the top shareholders with the largest shareholder being the grandson of Nordstrom’s founder who reportedly holds 15.86% followed by his sister who holds 9.68%. The department store chain has seen its shares rise 10% since the start of this year with double-digit revenue growth across its business lines in Q2. On the other hand, Nordstrom has seen the value of its shares drop close to 19% since the start of this year due to the economic pressures that customers have been facing.

The Nordstrom family offered to buy shares at 50 USD in 2018 but the board refused. Now the store shares are trading between 19 and 20 USD per share. Nordstrom has set in place a plan of action to protect the company from an unplanned takeover due to a company or individual acquiring more than 10% of shares, yet denies its connection to Liverpool's recent stake in the company.

The 'Poison Pill' plan demonstrates the department store's desperation to prove that its strategies are working despite time running out in the minds of shareholders.

Mexican high-end retailer Liverpool acquires passive stake in Nordstrom

Mexican high-end retailer Liverpool acquires passive stake in Nordstrom - Source 2

Mexican high-end retailer Liverpool acquires passive stake in Nordstrom - Source 3

What: The activewear giant will be opening their first ever permanent brick-and-mortar store that will include a sweat room, fitness advice experts, a Joe & the Juice, and more.

Why is it important: Not only will this store be a place to buy apparel, but also a place for their customer to be a part of a community and experience the essence of Gymshark.

The company is going alongside a lot of other direct-to-consumer brands who have begun opening stores or going into wholesale, which continues to confirm the trend.

The retailer says that they will be offering around 30 classes per week in their ‘Sweat Room,’ which doubles as a “stage” for bigger events like their Sunday Brunch events featuring a professional guest.

‘The Pro Bench’ section will be available to anyone wanting to book an appointment with in-store professionals who can advise on topics from personal training to mindset. ‘The Hub’ will be a space for the community to come together for workshops, panels, and more.

Gymshark Regent Street will open next month

What: After over two years of shuttering its stores and moving into Saks stores, the Barneys New York brand will return as beauty and wellness products, including bottled water.

Why it is important: Barney’s New York is joining the wellness and beauty trend with a four-product skincare line and artisanal water offering.

The skincare line-up, consisting of a cleanser, a serum, a day cream and a night cream, costing from 48 to 168 USD will launch alongside the debut of Barneys New York bottled water, which is sourced from Norway and will be available for 5.50 USD per 11-ounce glass bottle.

In a post-bankruptcy return, the brand is expanding into a different kind of product assortment: skincare and bottled water.

Barneys New York is back, as a beauty brand

What: The Dutch department store has been hit stronger than expected during the Covid-19 pandemic

Why it is important: De Bijenkorf is part of the Selfridges group, recently acquired by Central Thailand and Signa. Analysts wonder if the new owners will solely focus on the jewel of the crown (the Selfridges London location) or if they will also helping the other ailing brand names such as De Bijenkorf or Brown Thomas.

The Dutch department store De Bijenkorf reported an operating loss of €33.3m in  2021, in spite of an increase in sales of +10%. Higher management attributes this poor performance to rising costs and Covid-19-related closures during the 2021 winter. However, they are confident that 2022 will be much brighter in terms of financial performance.

De Bijenkorf admits losses for the second year in a row 

What: L’Oréal is launching a global program called L’Oréal Boost aimed at supporting young people’s employment.

Why it is important: L’Oréal Boost follows last year’s announcement about the L’Oréal for Youth program and the more recent US division’s plans to open a new research and innovation centre.

The project aims to give 20,000 students a year of access to on-demand digital courses from Coursera to help them improve their employability in the early stages of their careers. In addition, 100,000 people are to be offered guided digital projects through the companies’ digital tools and software.

So far, the L’Oréal for Youth program has created 18,342 work opportunities, enrolled 59,000 people in masterclasses, career-coached 18,000 young people and mentored 13,000.

L’Oréal youth employment program

What: Sephora announced a new subscription-based membership that allows shoppers to get same-day eligible items delivered in as little as two hours.

Why it is important: The retailer responded to a survey showing that fast delivery was the top service shoppers wanted.

The subscription, which includes unlimited same-day delivery through the site or app, costs 49USD per year.

Same day delivery subscription at Sephora

What: Legislative action is picking up around brands and retailers falsely advertising products as sustainable.

Why it is important: The new legal action and legislation increasing around the world advocating for transparency and validity in sustainability claims, are a serious wake-up for retailers and brands to carefully navigate their behaviour and communication.

H&M has recently been hit with a class-action lawsuit filed in New York earlier this month regarding their sustainability claims. The suit focuses on the ‘Conscious Collection’ and the misleading imagery and communication the company makes regarding recycling. H&M’s claim to recycle clothing by collecting used clothes has been addressed as misleading customers when the technology either does not exist or does not reach the scale or pace of H&M’s production.

The H&M lawsuit as well as the UK’s investigation into environmental claims made by fast fashion brands are seen as a door opening for other similar legal action to be taken. Aside from any financial outcome from potential legal battles, brands and retailers are already facing a PR storm and deteriorating public perceptions.

Other initiatives that seek to eliminate buzzwords at the product level are seen as an important step but keep customers responsible for their choices, not retailers. The recent legislation is likely to affect marketing primarily; it is unclear if it will address production policies.

Speculators foresee increased, stricter regulations but customer shopping behaviour is not expected to change until legislation attacks the supply chain directly.

Lawsuits amid fashion greenwashing crackdowns

What: In celebration of its 150th anniversary, Bloomingdale’s has created a virtual store to showcase products from luxury brands and immerse visitors in digital attractions.

Why it is important: During New York Fashion Week, Bloomingdale’s is engaging clients will an omnichannel celebration that includes a virtual store and other physical events across the US that will include exclusive merchandise.

Visitors to the virtual storefront will have access to an exclusive anniversary-themed collection along with a video highlighting the history of Bloomingdale’s, video games and the ability to buy luxury products.

Bloomingdale’s virtual store for NY Fashion Week

What: New owners, Central Group and Signa have big ambitions for Selfridges, and more UK cities could see new branches opening.

Why it is important: The joint partners plan to take advantage of a possible upturn in regional cities once the cost-of-living crisis ends by opening new stores, something which Selfridges hasn’t done in the past twenty years.

There are no concrete plans for UK expansion, but the owners have expressed their intention to establish a physical presence in second-tier cities.

While the company believes they are the only solution for luxury brands in terms of distribution, competitor department stores such as Harvey Nichols and Flannels have retail locations across the UK.

New Selfridges owners debate opening new stores

What: Over 20 product categories and 400 new brands will be available to customers on the new marketplace.

Why it is important: Macy’s continues to expand its already growing digital business with a new digital marketplace offering emerging brands and trending styles in a curated assortment with the possibility of connecting customers with third-party vendors.

Macy’s new digital marketplace

Macy’s new digital marketplace - Source 2

What: China, the world’s leading producer of footwear has Vietnam right behind them in second place producing over 1 billion pairs of footwear each year.

Why it is important: New agreements between Vietnam and Europe (the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement, EVFTA) have made importing easier and less costly, as well as a similar agreement with North America - The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) - has boosted Vietnam's footwear exports to Canada and Mexico.

New data from Research and Markets show Vietnam's footwear exports to the EU account for the largest proportion of total exports.

Nike and Adidas have both chosen Vietnam as their main production base because of lower costs. Nike with more than 100 suppliers in Vietnam and Adidas with 98% of its own-brand footwear produced in Vietnam.

#1 leader in footwear: China or Vietnam? 

What: Hwang-Judiesch, ex-Vice President of strategic initiatives at Ulta Beauty, replaces Wayne Drummond, who will be retiring from the company.

Why it is important: In this role, she will work closely with The Bay on the overall omni-customer, brand, and platform strategy. She will also help bring to life the Hudson’s Bay stores component of the strategy, including the execution of the company’s in-store digital selling transformation, customer experience and store optimization.

Hudson’s Bay names a new president

What: M&S employees will receive increased pay along with a 250-pound voucher as the retailer reacts to cost-of-living crisis stress.

Why it is important: The hourly pay increase will be ahead of both national and real living wage values.

The retailer is the latest in a string of UK companies launching support plans for its employees, and like John Lewis, food will also be given out along with sanitary products. In addition, M&S colleagues will have the opportunity to take part in free financial planning workshops.

M&S ups staff pay and hands out vouchers

What: Results show that wages and staffing are the top concerns for retailers.

Why is it important: Multimedia Plus survey reveals labour shortage is the main concern in finding good talent to hire for staff this upcoming holiday season.

65% of respondents said that recruiting is their number one issue, the better talent and the better they are trained, the better companies are able to grow and attract new customers.

The supply chain was a top challenge for 28% of retailers, 14% was onboarding new store associates, and scheduling was a top issue for 8%.

Retailers worry about lack of well-trained staff this holiday season

What: New owners, Central and Signa, are wanting to refurbish the underutilised space that could be a real asset to Oxford Street, as part of their plans to be the ultimate luxury online platform.

Why it is important: A plan for expansion will be put into place to be present in 11 countries, including Italy, Germany and Switzerland in order to bring promotion and awareness to their omnichannel services.

Their plan is to highlight the Selfridges global brand, its merchandise and brand curation, and specifically its exclusive collections. They will use data and technology to make the customer experience more personalized.

Selfridges is redeveloping underutilised space on Oxford Street

What: Entrepreneurs across Mexico are capitalizing on Shein’s cult following and cheap prices by creating networks of shops dedicated to bulk buying, warehousing and selling Shein products.

Why it is important: The lack of permanent physical Shein locations along with Mexico’s lack of trust in digital businesses and low connectivity rates in large parts of the country has made it possible for boutiques to sell the fast-fashion products despite lacking authorization.

While internet penetration has a rate of 75%, Mexico’s digital shoppers only account for 9% of the country’s formal retail purchases. Many of these boutiques instruct customers on how to order through them while selling products at the same price that appears online. The method for making a profit lies in the boutiques leveraging the gamified discount system. They receive a wholesale price by buying in bulk and receive points that can be exchanged for discounts from every purchase.

Mexico is a priority country for Shein as they have made repeat appearances of their travelling pop-up shops over the past couple of years.

Unauthorized Shein boutiques appear across Mexico

What: The parent company of Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman, has adjusted its corporate strategy to meet the new expectations of younger generations.

Why it is important: From the top down, Neiman Marcus Group is committed to setting a standard that ensures people-driven partnerships and provides employees with an ideal work environment.

Released in early 2021, NMG remains committed to its mission to revolutionise luxury’s impact through environmental social governance (ESG) by making it a cornerstone of its growth and transformation strategy. ‘Climate Change’ and ‘Workforce Diversity’ are core pillars for the goals it has set out to accomplish by 2025.

Neiman Marcus committed to environmental social governance

What: Peek & Cloppenburg opened its newest store in the Metropole Zličín shopping center in Prague on September 15th.

Why it is important: This will be the retailer’s fifth P&C store in the Czech Republic; their newest store present a wide range of fashion for women and men on a sales area of 4,000 square metres.

Czech Republic welcomes fifth Peek & Cloppenburg store