Sunday 30 October 2016

Retail News Briefs – 29/10/2016



Even Amazon Has Free Delivery Problems – Amazon revealed disappointing earnings this week and at least part of the reason is the cost of free delivery on many of their items.
Amazon conducts a Prime membership system that guarantees free delivery in return for a $99 annual subscription fee, but according to retail
commentators, $99 is just not enough.
Shipping expenses for Amazon jumped 43% last quarter as users took increasing advantage of the two-day unlimited shipping service.
The good news for Amazon is that their turnover is up dramatically but they just need to reign in operating costs. Amazon shares fell 6% on the news.

15 Main Street Shops Are Closing Every Day In Britain – The retail scene is changing in Britain as tobacconists, estate agents, and jewellers take over main streets previously populated by a variety of retailers. Fashion stores showed the biggest fall as the category continues to show across the board decline.

In-store Farms At Target – we wrote about the concept of in-house vertical farms back in August (http://www.victraders.com/2016/08/creating-farm-at-qvm.html) and Target in the US have decided to test the concept with farms being introduced early 2017. Leafy greens are considered the most likely staple although potatoes, beetroot and zucchini could also be on the menu.
Some commentators have questioned the ROI from such a venture but the returns in PR and marketing are seen as huge.

McDonalds Shows Revenue Growth – McDonald’s global sales were up by 3.5% in the third quarter buoyed by all day breakfast menus and healthier chicken. Weak performances in the past by companies like McDonalds have weighed heavily on consumer sentiment so this news was warmly greeted globally.

New Jewellery Chain To Open 9 Stores In Australia By Christmas - US Jewellery retailer, Alex and Ani, will shortly open its first Australian “studio” at Chatswood with 8 more stores scheduled by Christmas.

The chain started in 2014 in the US  and has shown huge growth with an emphasis on innovative design, re-cycled materials, and a business culture that fosters charity support. An app introduced in 2015 was adopted widely and not only introduced consumers to the product range but expanded on the background to different jewellery designs.