Retail Recap: The important moves in May 2022
The UK retail landscape has seen several new physical outlets open in May 2022, with only one store, Sweaty Betty's Shoreditch shop, closing its doors permanently.
Pressures on the retail industry remain, with consumers reportedly “putting the brakes” on their shopping habits due to the soaring cost of living. Spending on fashion could be one of the first things areas consumers cut back on.
Additionally, experts have recently found that traditional retailers now pay 755% more in business rates than digital competitors, as a war of words intensifies over a potential new online sales tax.
On a more positive note, this month has seen New Look's King Street store in South Shields team crowned as April's winner of Critizr's Proud of My Store award. This is a nationwide competition that celebrates the pride, commitment and exceptional service given by teams working in stores across the UK.
Store Openings
Footwear brand Kick Game to open store at Liverpool ONE
Luxury footwear brand Kick Game announced its plans to open a 3,500 sq ft store at Liverpool ONE. Located on South John Street, the new store is set to open in July and will offer exclusive sneaker and streetwear collections from sportwear brands including Nike, Adidas, Supreme and Off-White.
The Vintage Store opens largest outlet yet in Liverpool ONE
Vintage clothing retailer The Vintage Store opened a 12,000 sq ft store at Liverpool ONE at the end of May. The store features the brand’s signature collection of affordable vintage clothing, including popular sportswear retailers Adidas, Nike and Champion as well as pieces from designer brands including Ralph Lauren and Burberry.
H&M opens doors to relocated store at Glasgow's Braehead Shopping Centre
H&M opened its new 17,000 sq ft store at Braehead Shopping Centre in Glasgow on 23 May, a ground floor relocation from its previous unit, on a new 10-year lease. The upgraded store comes as the retailer steps up investment in both its physical and digital stores, with a renewed focus on the integrated customer experience, as well as sustainability.
OMEGA Showroom opens in St David's Cardiff
Laings has opened a 838 sq ft mono-brand Omega showroom in St David’s Cardiff. The Omega showroom is Laings first mono-brand showroom and also the first dedicated store for Omega in Wales. It is located on Hayes Arcade, the emerging luxury watch and jewellery quarter at St David’s and features Omega’s Constellation, Seamaster, Speedmaster, and De Ville collections.
Omega's new showroom in St David's Cardiff
David M Robinson reopens upsized and refurbished Liverpool ONE flagship
British luxury jewellery retailer, David M Robinson has upsized and refurbished its Liverpool ONE flagship following "strong performance" at the destination. The extended 5,478 sq ft site reopened on 17 May and debuts DMR’s latest concept showroom, designed in collaboration with international interior designers LXA.
Lone Design Club to open pop-up in Mayfair
Lone Design Club has opened a new pop-up space in London's Mayfair, providing a platform for independent and sustainable brands to flourish and reach new consumers. Located at 55 Brompton Road, Lone Design Club will host two back-to-back pop-ups, entitled "In Bloom" and "The Sustainable Summer", running until 17 June 2022.
Dune opens new store in Glasgow
Dune London has opened a new store located in the heart of Buchanan Street, one of Glasgow’s main shopping districts. The new 1,000 sq ft store is fitted with Dune London’s new, premium design concept, designed in-house by the store development team. The store brings noble, polished materials and a neutral colour palette to enhance its footwear and accessory collections.
Marks and Spencer to open new store at Lakeside
Lakeside Shopping Centre has announced that Marks & Spencer has signed an agreement to open a new store at the centre, due to launch in Spring 2023. Lakeside’s existing M&S store will move from its current location to the new unit, covering 98,000 sq ft of net selling space. The store will offer customers a wide range of M&S products across its new food hall, clothing, beauty and homeware departments.
Skechers opens new store in Westfield Stratford
Footwear company Skechers has opened a new store in Westfield Stratford. The new retail location is set on the first floor, in between skateboard shoe brand Vans and footwear retailer Foot Locker. The footwear chain also has a shop in Westfield London, as well as five more located across London.
LK Bennett Edinburgh flagship moves to Multrees Walk
LK Bennett’s Edinburgh flagship has moved to a new Edinburgh boutique at 16 Multrees Walk, nearby to the St James Quarter shopping centre on 14 May. The new store will showcase the Spring/Summer 22 collection, including the new eventwear capsule for Royal Ascot, the second as their Official Licensee for Ladieswear alongside its daywear, footwear and accessories.
Ted Baker to open new store in Milton Keynes
Ted Baker has announced it will open a new 2,150 sq ft store at Centre:mk in Milton Keynes later this year. Located on Silbury Arcade, the store will stock Ted Baker’s full range of womenswear, menswear, footwear and accessories. The new store will join centre:mk's existing brands including Fat Face, H beauty, Pandora, Marks and Spencer, Next and Primark.
Luxury resale platform Lampoo to launch London store
Luxury fashion resale platform Lampoo has announced it will open a new retail store in London next month, the brand's first-ever physical retail space in the UK. With hopes to bring the boutique experience to resale, the store, which is located on 31 King Road, provides eco-conscious consumers with the opportunity to buy and sell authenticated pre-loved designer pieces from brands like Chanel, Gucci, Balenciaga and Dior.
Bershka opens new store at Liverpool ONE
Inditex's Bershka has opened a new store at Liverpool ONE, marking the brand's regional debut. Spanning 8,000 sq ft on South John Street, the space houses the Bershka's three main Bershka, BSK and Man lines, as well as a number of exclusive ranges.
Animal opens first UK outlet store at Caledonia Park
Coastal lifestyle brand Animal opened a 1,504 sq ft outlet store at Caledonia Park, Scotland’s premier designer village. It’s the brand’s first UK outlet store, selling menswear, womenswear, accessories and footwear, and it joins other brands including Nike, Hugo Boss, Dune, Skopes and Police at the outlet village.
Sports Direct opens new £10 million flagship in Birmingham
Sports Direct opened a brand new flagship store in Birmingham’s city centre on 6 May.The 60,000 sq. ft space on New Street is set to house brands including Sports Direct, USC, Game, Evans Cycles and a Belong esports arena in a "curated activation spaces and interactive experiences for consumers to explore."
Selfridges launches 'Le Bleu' Jacquemus + Selfridges concept for May
Jacquemus launched a special project at Selfridges Oxford Street and online, featuring exclusive product edits and immersive experiences throughout May. The "Le Bleu" concept will be taking up residence in the flagship's creative retail space, The Corner Shop and will stock a selection of exclusive products including hoodies, t-shirts and towels as well as an edit of the Le Splash ready-to wear collection, and its photography book.
IKKS Paris to open two London stores
French fashion and lifestyle brand IKKS Paris has opened its first London store on 3 Carnaby Street and will open a second, at 109 Kings Road, in June. Having tested the water with a pop-up store on South Molton Street in June 2016, the new stores mark the brand’s first permanent retail footprints in the UK, though the brand was founded in Paris in 1987 by Gérard Le Goff and has 800 stores worldwide.
Store closures
Sweaty Betty closes Shoreditch store
British sportswear brand Sweaty Betty has closed its East London store on 3 Redchurch Street. It still operates 23 own stores and concessions in London as well as 39 own stores and concessions across the rest of the UK. It also operates concessions in the US and Canada, as well as Ireland, Germany, Singapore and Hong Kong.
Commercial Real Estate sales
Shaftesbury announces Soho retail space acquisition
Shaftesbury, the Real Estate Investment Trust which owns a 16 acre portfolio in London’s West End, announced that it has acquired a 200 year leasehold of the lower floors of 92-104 Berwick Street, Soho, for £27.5 million. Purchased from the Administrator of Berwick Street Securities LLP, the interest comprises 15,600 sq. ft. of retail and 3,600 sq. ft. which is suitable for restaurants, all of which will be available from Autumn 2022.
Partnership Agreements
Adidas and Foot Locker announces new long-term partnership
Adidas and Foot Locker have announced a new strategic partnership to target over £1.6 billion in retail sales by 2025, with Adidas expecting to generate incremental revenues of up to £85 million in 2022. The partnership will establish Foot Locker as the lead partner for Adidas in the basketball category, key launches, and the development and expansion of key franchises across women's, kids, and apparel.
Secret Shoppers
Secret Shopper: Philipp Plein's crypto concept store
TheIndustry.fashion visited Philipp Plein’s newly opened "crypto concept" flagship on 9 Bond Street, which claims to be the first in London to accept payment for physical goods in cryptocurrencies. One of fashion's biggest advocates for the metaverse, the German designer said shoppers at the Mayfair boutique can expect to be overwhelmed by the flagship's "retail experience 4.0", which would be rolled out to his 100 other outlets around the world, if successful. This TheIndustry.fashion's verdict of the store.
Secret Shopper: Selfridges - Manchester: 1, London: 0
TheIndustry.fashion recently visited Selfridges Manchester and London department stores, looking at how the shopping experience, retail environment and customer journey differs between two cities. In recent years, Selfridges has been at the heart of cutting edge retail innovation and strong customer experience. With the sale of the upscale department store group having been confirmed just before Christmas 2021, the future of the business is shrouded in mystery but optimism. In this Secret Shopper we'll be investigating how Selfridge's Manchester store compares to its London location.
Secret Shopper: Stradivarius's digital fashion collection
As part of TheIndustry.fashion's Secret Shopper series we "tried on" garments from Stradivarius' new virtual fashion collection "Blueming". Digital fashion has become increasingly popular since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, and now users have the ability to augment virtual designs onto their own photographs. The latest fashion brand that is experimenting with this new form of dressing up solely for the benefit of the virtual world is Stradivarius. This is our verdict on the new Blueming collection and how easy it is to "wear" clothing digitally.
