Business Reporter

There are promising signs that data mined from social media can add value to online businesses by improving customer insight and predicting future demand What record jumped 262 per cent from 6,939 to 25,088 in 2011? What first took three years and now takes less than five days? The answer to the first is tweets [...]

An unclear pricing system can be the difference between sale and fail. One company argues that a simple and cost-effective way to replace manually created price tickets saves precious time and money With the economy in slow recovery it is more important than ever for retailers to find a pricing system that works. Sales may [...]

Multi-channelling is the buzzword among retailers – new customer buying trends and the increase in mobile technology mean the sky’s the limit Who would have predicted 15 years ago that the British would swarm to buy clothes online – even without trying them on? Or that it would be possible to buy an entire kitchen [...]

From Amazon lockers to personal stylists, retailers across the country are looking at new ways to enhance the consumers’ shopping experience Leading shopping centres such as Bluewater in Kent and Manchester’s Trafford Centre are working with retailers on new ways to attract customers and boost spending. Trevor Pereira, commercial director of Capital Shopping Centres – [...]

Ease of access, fast delivery, now even virtual changing rooms…new ways of developing the online world are paying off as sales continue to grow Christmas came late for some retailers in 2011. On Boxing Day, there were 96m UK internet visits – a 19 per cent jump from the previous year, according to Experian Hitwise. [...]

Whether it’s US chains setting up in the UK, or British firms eyeing overseas markets, many businesses are looking abroad for their next move The UK market is a tough nut to crack but despite the economic woes of the past few years, those from across the Atlantic haven’t been put off. Clothing retailer Forever [...]

Training academy teaches why buyers must understand how to operate, and why operators must understand how to buy After 27 years, Uniserve has become the largest privately owned freight forwarding company in the UK and one of the most profitable in any freight forwarding category. At a time when the economy is about to go [...]

New rules governing online sales, advertising and data use present fresh and immediate challenges for businesses Growth on the high street remains subdued, with retailers enduring the tightest squeeze on consumer spending in a generation. Yet, market analysts report astonishing growth in online retailing. Last year saw online retailing grow by 16 per cent, making [...]

More and more businesses are developing multi-channel strategies but are they doing enough to ensure that their investment will pay off? For many retailers the high street is no longer their sole battleground. These days, it’s a multi-channel arena. Retailers are using email, mobile, social media and the web to capture customers’ attention and build [...]

Despite respectable Christmas trading figures the British retail industry is still in the doldrums, with minimal growth reported for 2011 The fact that UK retail sales values were 2.2 per cent higher on a like-for-like basis from December 2010, when the snow caused sales to fall by 0.3 per cent, brought little relief to pressured [...]