Main Image: Primark

PRShots Digest brings you the latest retail news from LVMH, Frasers Group, AWWG, River Island, Clarks, Slam Jam, 7879, Ocado, AO, M&S, John Lewis, Sweaty Betty, Hobbycraft, Sephora, David Gandy, Superdry and Dunelm. Plus articles on how to choose the best images for social, why Airbnb ditched online advertising, are virtual-try ons the future and more.

To see the latest news go to our Twitter account @prshotsr

THE LATEST RETAIL INDUSTRY NEWS

LVMH looks to acquire Cartier

French luxury house LVMH, which currently owns Louis Vuitton and Tiffany & Co, is considering acquiring French luxury jeweller Cartier via a takeover of Richemont, or a direct purchase of Cartier.

Frasers Group begins redundancy process at former JD Sports brands

Frasers Group has started a consultation at the 14 fashion brands it bought from JD Sports before Christmas, placing 90 jobs at risk.

AWWG expects revenues of €585m

The All We Wear Group, owner of fashion brands Pepe Jeans, Hackett and Façonnable expects FY22 ending March with revenues up 20% to €585m and its EBITDA up 60%.

7879 boss eyes store partnership after bumper first year’s trading

Specialist retailer 7879 has credited its successful first year of trading to shoppers “seeking a fresh approach to collecting jewellery”

Ocado posts widening loss as retail sales decline

Ocado has posted a pre-tax loss of £501m for the year to 31 Dec 2022 as the cost-of-living crisis created a “challenging year”.

AO increases profit guidance for second time this year

AO.com has increased its profit guidance for the year to March 2023 it now expects adjusted EBITDA to be £45-37.5m an increase on the previous guidance of £40-30million from January.

UK footfall dips following strong half-term performance

Footfall across all UK retail destinations dropped by 5.3% last week - following a 7.6% half-term boost - with shopping centres down of 7.1%. high streets down 5.6 and retail parks down 2.8%.

Under-30s hit hardest in cost-of-living crisis

Asda’s latest Income Tracker shows that it's the under-30s who are most impacted by the cost-of-living crisis with their discretionary income down by 17.5% year on year in January.

Dunelm trials hybrid four-day week

Dunelm is the latest retailer to begin trialling a four-day week for its employees in selected departments with a view to expanding the scheme.

Amazon to push ahead with ultrafast delivery in the US

Amazon US is pushing ahead with ultrafast same-day delivery from its network of warehouses the firm calls ‘same-day sites’.

TRENDS, STRATEGY AND TECHNOLOGY

Are virtual try-ons the future of retail?

Virtual try-ons (VTOs) have not only started to take ownership of the e-commerce world, but have also slowly begun to progress into physical retail.

How fashion brands lead the way in personalisation

Personalisation is not just a “nice to have” it is what shoppers expect. According to Accenture, 84% of the public and 94% of fashion enthusiasts want personalised fashion recommendations.

How Airbnb grew earnings by cutting performance marketing in favour of PR

Expect to see lots of PR agencies and in-house teams citing Airbnb's CEO Brian Chesky saying, "PR is Airbnb’s most important channel" and that 90% of the platform's traffic is direct.

Choosing visual content for social media

It turns out that what marketing and creative people think is 'good' isn't necessarily what the consumers they are targeting think is good.

River Island taps Mercaux for self-checkout stores

River Island is trialling Mercaux RFID self-checkout terminals in its stores to speed up checkouts and are already seeing more shoppers choosing to use the tech than they originally estimated

PEOPLE, MOVERS AND SHAKERS

M&S appoints former Meta exec as chief data scientist

M&S has appointed former Meta exec Russell Johnson as its new chief data scientist with the remit to build and enhance its data science capabilities, as part of a wider brand digital transformation.

Dune announces new US appointment

Footwear brand Dune has appointed Lindsey Borkowski as vice president of North American sales. Borkowski was previously head of sales at Ted Baker.

John Lewis executive director Pippa Wicks steps down

John Lewis executive director Pippa Wicks is set to depart from her role. She will be replaced with immediate effect on an interim basis by Naomi Simcock, John Lewis’ retail director.

Superdry appoints Hotel Chocolat exec to board

Superdry has appointed Lysa Hardy to its board as an independent non-executive director with effect from 1 May this year.

BRAND NEWS

Sweaty Betty chooses Liverpool ONE for biggest store in north of England

Activewear brand Sweaty Betty is to open a 2600sqft store at the Liverpool ONE shopping destination, when it opens in June it will be its biggest store in the north of England.

David Gandy Wellwear adds new-gen chinos to line-up

David Gandy’s Wellwear line has added full-length chino trousers that it says are an essential part of a spring wardrobe refresh.

Hobbycraft goes green for Easter

Hobbycraft has gone green for Easter with more lines than ever before being packaged in reusable or recyclable packaging.

Sephora's UK flagship to open next month

Sephora is to open its first British store since returning to the country via its online launch last autumn, the store 6,000 sqft store is in Westfield White City and will open 8 March.

Hervia reopens HQ and flagship store following investment

Manchester’s iconic fashion retailer Hervia will today reopen their new HQ and flagship store following its acquisition by growth investor Rami Cassis in the middle of last year.

Clarks steps into urban subculture with Slam Jam collab

Clarks latest collaborations sees heritage urban subculture brand Slam Jam and Clarks Originals paying tribute to the Two-Tone Subculture, reworking the Wallabee shoe’s style.

Metaverse Fashion Week unveils jam-packed 2023 line up

Metaverse Fashion Week (MVFW) is set to return once again boasting a flush line up of luxury brands and intriguing events all taking place within the digital world.

AND FINALLY

Moonpig stops selling cards with pugs after animal welfare concerns

Moonpig will no longer sell cards with pictures of pugs and French bulldogs after criticism from vets and campaigners who said it "normalises their suffering from respiratory ailments".

PRSHOTS TOP 10 SEARCHES

What were our users searching for on PRShots Week ending February 24^th 2023?

1/ Mother’s Day

2/ Easter

3/ Garden

4/ Vase

5/ Coronation

6/ Mirror

7/ Bedroom

8/ Cushion

9/ SS23  

10/ Jacket

COLLABORATIONS ON PRSHOTS

Our PRShots brands are looking for media and influencers who want to work with them on collaborations. Register for free at PRShots new collabs service to find out more https://collabs.prshots.com/ 

NEW BRANDS TO PRSHOTS

Curvy Kate lingerie and swimwear is designed to make women feel fabulous about their curves. With sizes from D to K cups Curvy Kate lingerie and swimwear ethos is to “Fit, lift, shape and comfort.”

Imp & Maker founded by entrepreneur Sarah Louise Fairburn to bring together food, drinks & gifts from established, emerging and exciting new names in the food & drink world for both home and corporate gifting.

Scamp & Dude was created by Jo Tutchener-Sharp, founder and previous MD of Beauty Seen PR and is famous for their signature leopard and lightning bolt print and vibrant designs, which features in their mens, womens, kids and baby ranges.

Hobbycraft was founded in 1995, and has since grown to be the largest arts and crafts retailer in the UK with over 100 stores across the UK, and has everything you need for art, knitting and crochet, haberdashery, papercraft, wedding and party, baking, jewellery making and more.

Silk & Lawn are a Brighton-based accessories brand creating beautiful handmade headbands, hair ties & turbans for little and grown-up people made from silk and Tana lawn cottons.

HELP WITH YOUR IMAGE SEARCHES

The latest images on PRShots are found here https://www.prshots.com/whatsnew why not bookmark the page for a regular feed of the latest images on PRShots!! You can select the latest images from the last 24hours, week, or month.

BRANDS WITH NEW IMAGES

Clothing, beauty and accessories

Freemans has new Star by Julien Macdonald and Love Mark Heyes ranges

NoLoGo  has new ranges for spring and summer

Primark has new makeup, summer clothing for men and women and kids clothing and accessories.

Dancing Leopard has new womenswear ranges

Crew Clothing has new menswear and womenswear, accessories, and shoes

Very has V by Very swimwear and dresses plus Everyday womenswear ranges, handbags, shoes and accessories

Peacocks has new womenswear

Roman Originals has new spring and summer ranges

Monsoon has a new SS23 womenswear and accessories, kids swimwear and summer clothing and new eco fabric Lenzing clothes

Matalan launches the Papaya Curve range of clothes as well as new shoes and bags

Bryony Bel  has new jewellery ranges

Lipsy has new SS23 clothing including Friends Like These, Love & Roses, plus accessories and shoes for women and bridesmaid outfits

Tu Clothing has new SS23 clothing, shoes, bags and accessories

New Look has new swimwear and summer clothing drops

Regatta has new kids beach and summer wear

Dune London has new kids shoe ranges for the summer

PrettyLittleThing  has a new ranges and collabs

Dune London Men’s has new SS23 ranges

Barbour has new kids clothing and womenswear ranges

Marks & Spencer has a new denim collection and lingerie for its “Love your Boobs” campaign

River Island has new summer clothing and wedding outfits for him and her

Office has new men and womens ranges

TU Clothing has new ranges

Cotton Traders has new men’s and women’s wear

Fatface has the Fletchers in its new campaign

Radley has new ranges but check the embargo

See additional new clothing and accessories images from the last few weeks at

Cath Kidston Threadbare Joe Browns Aspiga Oliver Bonas From my mother’s garden TK Maxx  Night Store John Lewis F&F Bonmarché Deichmann UK George at Asda

Home and food

Nest  Has outdoor living furniture and interior ideas  

Dobbies Garden Centres has new things for the home, edible planting, patio furniture, house plants, chimeneas, pizza ovens, firepits.

Furniture Village has new outdoor furniture for the garden and patio

Sofology has a new Sapporo, Hetty and Fellini ranges

Cardfactory has new Mother’s Day gifts

Cartwright & Butler has new Easter and Mother’s Day hampers and gift boxes

Cuckooland has new furniture

Dunelm has new homeware and Easter gifts and decorations

The Range has Easter homeware and decorations, plus kitchen and homeware to keep you organised in 2023

Wilko has hundreds of new kitchen, dining, bed, bath and living room items

National Trust shop has new Easter gifts

B&M has their new Ocean Tide and Simply Home ranges for the bedroom, bathroom, dining room and lounge

Next launches Easter collections as well as a new Tahiti, Stockholm, Arches, Valencia and Medley collections

Homesense has new SS23 home and garden items plus gifts for Easter and Mother’s day

Biscuiteers Baking has new ranges for Easter, Mother’s day and Father’s Day

Cutter & Squidge has Mother’s day and Easter hampers and goodies

National Trust Shop has new puzzles,  gifts and things for the garden

Fritz Fryer has new lighting solutions

Cult Furniture  has new tables and chairs

See additional new home images from the last few weeks from

Fatface George Home Daisy Park  Very Primark Home Oliver Bonas Cath Kidston TK Maxx Hotel Chocolat John Lewis Marks & Spencer Cambridge Imprint  Designers Guild Matalan NoLoGo Avalana Dune London Luxdeco Designers Guild White Stuff Monsoon

Looking for inspiration??

Our trends lightboxes section has lots of ideas for features and themes but If  you can't find something or you need help then email us at support@prshots.com, and we'll see if we can help

DIARY

PRShots Retail Alert

Days until Mother’s Day – 19

Days until Easter – 40

Days until Eid al-Fitr – 52

Days until Halloween – 245

Days until Singles Day - 256

Days until Black Friday – 269

Days until Christmas Day – 300

How to get your brand on the March Editorial Calendars, search engines and social media 

March is mostly about preparing for the big Easter holidays in April so make sure you are starting to include relevant Easter keywords, plus it’s also the time people make their first big getaway abroad so any keywords and clothes for warmer climes, loungewear, going out wear, swimsuits, bikinis etc should be added.

At the end of the month there’s Mother’s Day so try and get Mother, gifts, or Mother’s Day into your keywords for anything that seems appropriate. Also, if you have anything green then add the Keyword St Patricks Day.

Plus, as we’re now definitely in Spring, carry on adding those spring and summer-related images and adding keywords relating to the summer like swimwear, outdoor living, garden, garden parties and Barbecues (don’t forget to add all of the other spellings BBQ, Bar-B-Que etc).   

We’re also starting to get ready for the bridal season – the peak is May to October – so If you have bridal wear or anything appropriate to weddings then start to upload it, and label it with the keyword wedding.

Lastly, it’s Oscar month so why not upload some smart suits and dresses and create an Oscar section for an evening watching the Oscars.  

If you’re looking for more hooks to help promote your brand and products then see the list of days, weeks and fortnights below.

March Diary - Weeks/Months

In the UK it’s National Bed Month - Introduced by The Sleep Council and The National Bed Federation, it aims to raise awareness of the importance of sleep so push anything sleep-related. it’s also the British Heart Foundation Dechox month which encourages people to give up chocolate – cakes and biscuits - for the month! So, any chocolate, biscuit or cake alternatives should be pushed.   

Interesting Stat: National No-Smoking day was originally on Ash Wednesday when it was started in 1984. It was moved to the second Wednesday in March as, while it’s less easy to remember, the date doesn’t move around the calendar quite so much as Ash Wednesday does.  

Other events include;

Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month

Fairtrade Fortnight (Feb 27^th – Mar 12^th)

British Pie Week (6^th-12^th)

British Science Week (10^th-19^th)

Butchers Week (6^th-12^th)

World Autism Awareness Week (Mar 27^th – Apr 2^nd)

Ideal Home Show (Mar 17^th – Apr 2^nd)

London Bridal Fashion Week (19^th-21^st)

National Fragrance Week (20^th-26^th)

March - Days

1^st – St David’s Day

2^nd – Dr Seuss Day (US)

2^nd – World Book Day

3^rd – World Wildlife Day

3^rd – World Hearing Day

4^th – World Obesity Day

5^th - Passover Begins 

7^th – Holi Hindu Festival

8^th – International Women’s Day

8^th – No Smoking Day

12^th – The Oscars 

13^th – Commonwealth Day

13^th - Passover Ends 

15^th – Spring Budget Day

17^th – St Patrick’s Day

17^th – World Sleep Day

17^th - Red Nose Day for Comic Relief

18^th – Global Recycling Day

19^th - Mother’s Day UK

20^th – First Day of Spring 

21^st – International Day of Forests

21^st – World Poetry Day

22^nd – World Water Day

22^nd - Start of Ramadan

25^th – National Bridesmaids Day

26^th – British Summertime Begins 

26^th – Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race

31^st – Wear a Hat Day (Brain Tumour Research)  

Do you have any news on your brand that you want us to feature, or have a new appointee or a new event that you would like us to feature? Get in touch at news@prshots.com We don't charge, so get emailing now!!!

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