- Details
- SUPPLY & WHOLESALE
Prestige kitchen brand Poggenpohl could have a third owner in as many years after the company filed for a German insolvency process similar to administration.
- Details
- REGIONAL
New owner of Cousins' Manchester store discloses value of investment, hopes to be on site imminently
The new owner of the 90,000sqft Greater Manchester superstore of independent furniture retailer Cousins has timetabled its plans for the site and disclosed the value of its investment in the property.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
General merchandise giant Next, one of the largest retailers of furniture in the U.K., says 70 percent of its product range is now available to buy online again, including smaller furniture merchandise.
- Details
- REGIONAL
A business retailing high-end designer furniture brands online and from premises in North Yorkshire folded last month leaving nearly 200 consumers owed an average of about £2,000 apiece.
- Details
- ECOMMERCE
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has upheld a complaint regarding advertising by ecommerce retailer Furniture123 in a ruling instructive for others in the industry.
- Details
- FLOORCOVERINGS
Independent floorcoverings retailers bolstered their market position amid challenging trading conditions last year according to Brintons, the major Kidderminster carpet conglomerate.
- Details
- UPHOLSTERY
Narrower margins and lower group revenue prompted a fall in profits at major upholstery group Sofa Brands International last year. Three of its business units still achieved higher sales.
- Details
- POLITICS
Business leaders will this week join politicians and senior trade association officials to agree the key impacts of Covid-19 on the furniture and furnishings sector in the hope of bolstering Government support for the industry.
- Details
- ECOMMERCE
Maisons du Monde, one of Britain's largest Internet furniture and home décor retailers, says it has seen a spike in online orders but not at a level to prevent the closure of its international store network harming total sales.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
Foam conglomerate Recticel reported lower first quarter sales after its plants and customers worldwide were laid low by the impact of Covid-19.
- Details
- FLOORCOVERINGS
The carve up of the Axminster Carpets group leaves creditors facing a shortfall of up to about £9 million, despite a number of asset sales generating cash for their benefit.
- Details
- FLOORCOVERINGS
Designer Contracts, the national floorcoverings contractor, is unfurloughing staff and resuming fitting services as its customer base emerges out of lockdown.
- Details
- SUPPLY & WHOLESALE
The loss of a contract to supply retail giant Next and the ill-fated acquisition of the Montgomery brand contributed to the insolvency of Ena Shaw, the heritage soft furnishings manufacturer and home store retailer.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
The impact of the enforced closure of retail stores from March 23 onwards after the lockdown was introduced has been spelled out by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
IKEA, the U.K.'s largest home furnishings retailer, is planning to add a Cambridgeshire order-and-collect store to its roster of smaller-format outlets across the country.
- Details
- ECOMMERCE
Having secured £8 million in debt and equity funding, retailer has "firepower to increase market penetration."
- Details
- ECOMMERCE
Blue Sun Tree, the Loughborough based etailer of modern, contemporary and classic designer furniture, folded last month leaving creditors facing a shortfall.
- Details
- UPHOLSTERY
Staff at Lincolnshire sofa manufacturer Lebus Upholstery have been producing personal protective equipment (PPE) for local organisations, aiding the effort to tackle the coronavirus pandemic.
- Details
- UPHOLSTERY
Sofa market leader DFS will not make any opportunistic acquisitions if rivals fall by the wayside through the Covid-19 crisis after it agreed with lenders to a moratorium on takeovers.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
The future of Breasley, the East Midlands mattress maker and foam converter, could be resolved as early as next week as a sale process and restructure nears its conclusion.
- Details
- OPINION & ANALYSIS
Gordon Brothers, the turnaround investor and buyer of distressed businesses, has acquired the Laura Ashley brand, archive and other intellectual property.
- Details
- TRADE & INDUSTRY
Bed makers Hypnos and The Natural Mat Company were among at least eight industry concerns to receive Queen's Awards for Enterprise 2020, which recognises business achievement across various criteria.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
There is life left yet in the imperilled Laura Ashley brand after the intellectual property of the fashion-to-furnishings retailer was sold to Gordon Brothers, the global advisory, restructuring, and investment firm.
- Details
- UPHOLSTERY
Upholstery chain DFS has raised access to £134 million in additional debt and equity and says it now has enough liquidity to survive through December, even if a full lockdown were to remain through that period and trading conditions continue to be weak thereafter.
- Details
- ECOMMERCE
The U.K. arm of ecommerce giant eBay is enabling British retail SMEs in the furniture and homewares categories to list for free on its platform through spring as it aims to drive its own business and help support the economy.
- Details
- CASE GOODS
Clive Christian Furniture Co, the luxury furniture and cabinet maker bought by a private investor last year, has hired its former sales and marketing director after a 16-year absence.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
The Foam Company — the Oxfordshire mattress maker which has produced goods for well-known brands including Mammoth and Sleepshaper, says it has been supporting the NHS to help limit the impact of the coronavirus.
- Details
- UPHOLSTERY
Sofas by Saxon, the Lancashire furniture manufacturer, has begun producing personal protective equipment (PPE) and called on its industry peers not already doing so to follow suit.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
Bed-in-a-box brand Casper Sleep says it will close its European operations to save costs and focus on its core markets in North America.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
Savoir Beds, the high-end London based bed maker, says it has been able to continue manufacturing and delivering to customers' homes throughout the lockdown period.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
Adova Group, parent to storied Kent bed manufacturer Sleepeezee, has named its new chief executive following the departure of Jacques Schaffnit, who had run the business since 2017.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
Department store retailer John Lewis & Partners says its worst-case scenario would see sales drop by more than a third this year, with rising online sales not enough to supplant the absence of store income.
- Details
- ECOMMERCE
Scottish homewares retailer The Rug Stores has rebranded its business to reflect its broader product offering. It is now called Ornatus Interiors.
- Details
- UPHOLSTERY
ACL, one of Britain's largest privately-owned sofa manufacturers, has turned its production expertise to the effort to equip front-line health and care workers.
- Details
- EVENTS
Organisers of the Manchester Furniture Show have postponed this summer's exhibition as a consequence of the coronavirus pandemic, with the next edition now to take place July 2021.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
Blue Group has recruited from the bed manufacturing sector for the newly-created chief operating officer role at its Harveys and Bensons for Beds businesses.
- Details
- TRADE & INDUSTRY
Applications for the Government's Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme opened yesterday (April 20) and companies will have to be organised and prompt if they wish to secure cash in time for April's payday runs.
- Details
- OPINION & ANALYSIS
Dunelm, the major home goods retailer, has restarted two-man furniture deliveries this week. It is unlikely to be the last of the major companies to do so before restrictions are eased, but it will be much harder for some than it is for others.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
The Wiltshire group behind the Neptune furniture and home interiors brand slipped to a loss last year after it recorded a one-off seven-figure charge. Underlying profits also declined.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
B&Q, the home improvement and DIY giant, has reopened more than a dozen stores across the U.K., putting in place new measures aimed at keeping staff and customers at a safe distance from each other.
- Details
- UPHOLSTERY
Some of Europe's largest upholstery producers have re-platformed their manufacturing towards personal protective equipment (PPE) amid the coronavirus pandemic.
- Details
- UPHOLSTERY
Upholstery market leader DFS says it is close to agreeing an additional debt facility to aid liquidity until it can unwind its order book, which has been bolstered by recent ecommerce gains.
- Details
- ECOMMERCE
Home and furniture etailer Amara Living has in the past month completed a high seven-figure refinancing exercise that sees it generate millions of pounds in equity and debt funding.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
John Lewis has temporarily mothballed its interest free credit offer for furniture purchases, hampering its ability to sell higher value items.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
The National Bed Federation (NBF) has published new guidelines aimed at improving testing quality and consistency for mattress makers, and the laboratories that test their products.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
Debenhams, which called in administrators early April, says it has agreed new terms with landlords across 85 percent of its estate but has called time on seven of its shops and is in talks regarding others.
- Details
- SUPPLY & WHOLESALE
Andrew Porter, the storage and fulfilment specialist, has repurposed part of its warehouse to provide emergency furniture storage to companies unable to take in incoming stock.
- Details
- LEGAL & RESTRUCTURING
Ayiaz Ahmed, a serial company owner that has run some of the most storied brands in U.K. furniture retail and production, has been disqualified as a director by The Insolvency Service.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
March saw British retailers endure the sharpest decline in sales since records began according to a closely-followed retail survey, despite double-digit growth in the first three weeks of the month.
- Details
- UPHOLSTERY
Upholstery boss since 2018 moves on to the marketing sector, returning to a CFO position.
- Details
- UPHOLSTERY
Tessutica, owner of the Ragolle Fabrics and Beaulieu Fabrics brands, has introduced a 100 percent recycled and recyclable upholstery covers product line.
- Details
- EVENTS
Organisers of the twice-yearly High Point Market in the U.S. have cancelled the spring edition, having earlier rescheduled the furniture exhibition from its original April dateline to June.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
FIRA International, the Stevenage based testing and furniture services provider, has been supporting the new NHS Nightingale hospitals with free product testing for a key medical mattress supplier.
- Details
- OPINION & ANALYSIS
The coronavirus pandemic has posed myriad challenges to the entire U.K. furniture industry but those that bring product in from far-off lands face additional and potentially existential threats.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
Home furnishings retailer Dunelm has paved the way for a return to bulky goods furniture delivery while it said all other parts of its online business are now fully operational.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
Creditors of a circa £6 million turnover North West bedding supplier face a seven-figure shortfall after it ceased trading earlier this year.
- Details
- UPHOLSTERY
Customers have praised the appointment of Andy Kennaugh as managing director at sofa maker Alstons, describing him as one of the best in the trade.
- Details
- SUPPLY & WHOLESALE
Luxury interior furnishings group Walker Greenbank says it has reduced its cash burn after many employees, including those not furloughed, accepted a temporary salary reduction.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
Foam and sprung mattress imports into the U.K. declined for the fifth consecutive month in February, new Government figures show.
- Details
- SUPPLY & WHOLESALE
Some of the highest profile names in worldwide designer furniture manufacturing have issued a plea to legislators, fearing the loss of 7,000 businesses in the sector across Italy because of the coronavirus pandemic.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
Recticel, the Belgian foam conglomerate and major supplier to U.K. sofa and bed manufacturers, has agreed to sell its 50 percent stake in Eurofoam.
- Details
- CASE GOODS
Wood furniture imports across the living, dining and bedroom categories fell for a third straight month in February, though German exports made big gains.
- Details
- INTERNATIONAL
Global furniture chain JYSK is spending €200 million building a new distribution centre in Hungary designed to meet its logistics needs across seven Central European markets.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
Next, one of the biggest retailers of furniture in the country, is to reopen its online business from today with a limited product catalogue and restrictions over order levels.
- Details
- UPHOLSTERY
Upholstery imports into the U.K. declined from most major source nations with one notable exception as Poland continued to emerge as the dominant origin of European-made sofas sold here.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
U.K. mattress factories along with suppliers to the bed trade have pivoted production towards supporting the effort to confront the coronavirus pandemic, says the National Bed Federation (NBF).
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
Revenue jumped by well over a third for the business unit housing the Millbrook Beds business last year, lifting earnings for the company.
- Details
- FLOORCOVERINGS
Imports of carpets from Belgium declined by almost a third in February as U.K. retailers and wholesalers pivoted to its biggest national competitor.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
Debenhams, the department store retailer, has today been placed into administration. It follows an earlier notice of its intent to do so filed earlier this week (see related).
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
DFS has disclosed the individual business unit breakdown for its upholstery and furniture chains Sofology, Dwell and Sofa Workshop in the 2018–19 period for the first time.
- Details
- SUPPLY & WHOLESALE
The Secretary of State for Business and Industrial Strategy has written an open letter to U.K. manufacturers across all sectors paying tribute to the work being done to keep the economy moving.
- Details
- UPHOLSTERY
The insolvency of a West Midlands based direct-to-consumer manufacturer of soft furnishings products has left creditors facing a shortfall.
- Details
- COMMUNITY
The Furniture Makers' Company, the industry's dedicated charity, has issued a new clarion call highlighting financial support it can provide to hard-hit furnishing industry workers amid the coronavirus pandemic.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
The National Bed Federation (NBF), the bed industry trade association, is offering housebound bed store workers free training during the coronavirus pandemic.
- Details
- OPINION & ANALYSIS
Tomorrow (Apr. 9) is the last day of lent. This year, many in the furniture industry have given up two things fundamental to their continued existence: selling and delivering furniture.
- Details
- ECOMMERCE
Home furnishings giant Wayfair says its "ecommerce model is uniquely suited to serving customers’ very real needs at this challenging time," as it announced sales growth has rocketed in the past fortnight.
- Details
- ECOMMERCE
Britain's competition watchdog is to escalate its investigation into the completed takeover of the company behind ecommerce retailer 247Blinds by the owner of Hillarys into a Phase 2 inquiry, heightening the possibility of enforcement action.
- Details
- UPHOLSTERY
Sherborne, one of the U.K.'s best capitalised upholstery manufacturers, found margin gains to boost profits last year. Sales were flat.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
A soft furnishings manufacturer wholly-owned by Laura Ashley that does most but not all of its business with the retail chain has also filed for administration.
- Details
- FLOORCOVERINGS
North West distributor Flair Rugs achieved a decade of consecutive year-on-year sales growth after output climbed again last year, new accounts show.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
James Sturrock is to step down as chief executive at Eve Sleep, the direct-to-consumer mattress and ancillary products brand, to take up a new post outside the company.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
Consumer confidence for big-ticket items has plummeted to its lowest level since records began, sparking alarm for the eventual planned delivery of orders already taken in the pre Covid-19 period.
- Details
- TRADE & INDUSTRY
An estimated 100,000 jobs across the furniture and furnishings sector have either been furloughed or eliminated since the coronavirus crisis began, with the future of many now dependent on Government funds.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
A private investment group already with skin-in-the-game in the mattress sector has acquired a 50.1 percent stake in direct-to-consumer beds business Emma - The Sleep Company.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
Debenhams has confirmed it filed a notice of intention to appoint administrators, a move that buys the retailer protection from creditor action for nearly two weeks.
- Details
- UPHOLSTERY
East Midlands upholstery manufacturer JDP Furniture Group has been placed into administration after it was adversely impacted by the insolvency of Laura Ashley, a major customer of one of its production units.
- Details
- UPHOLSTERY
Hopes are high for the future of rise and recline upholstery producer Celebrity Motion Furniture despite the company and its parent being placed into administration late last week.
- Details
- UPHOLSTERY
ScS chief executive David Knight, who announced his intention to retire back in January, has agreed to remain in place for an extended period of time as the group navigates the coronavirus crisis.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
Direct-to-consumer mattress brand Emma says it near doubled sales in the U.K. in the first three months of the year, adding that it continued unaffected by the coronavirus pandemic.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
Department store retailer Debenhams is considering ways to protect the business from creditor action including a possible second insolvent restructure within the space of a year.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
Family-owned department store retailer Fenwick has reshaped its senior management team, with its chief executive and chairman both to depart.
- Details
- SUPPLY & WHOLESALE
Cabinet furniture maker and distributor Devonshire incurred a bigger loss on lower sales ahead of its sale last autumn and subsequent relaunch earlier this year.
- Details
- ECOMMERCE
The release of selected financial figures indicate a breakout year for privately-owned ecommerce retailer Furniture Box in 2018–19.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
Chief marketing officer Tony Holdway and director of retail Paul Owen will depart national beds specialist Dreams, its CEO has told Retail Week, a trade newspaper.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
Bed manufacturers and their customers can access up-to-date advice on support packages available to them via a newly-created Coronavirus Hub put together by the National Bed Federation (NBF).
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
More than 90 years of history and heritage has been salvaged after a U.S. bed-industry investor acquired North West mattress maker Burgess out of administration.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
Returns for the secured creditors of fallen department store retailer Beales will depend on the value administrators can extract out of the company's three principal property assets.
- Details
- IMPORTS & EXPORTS
The release of January furniture and flooring trade data offers insight into inventory levels ahead of feared supply chain disruption out of China and subsequent demand concerns with enforced store closures.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
Diversified manufacturer GNG Group says it is working around the clock to meet demand within its healthcare unit with the company having been awarded Key Supplier Status by the National Health Service (NHS).
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
Fashion-to-furnishings retailer Laura Ashley has withdrawn the option to buy big-ticket furniture lines from its ecommerce offer, though the company continues to sell other merchandise as it trades through administration.
- Details
- SUPPLY & WHOLESALE
Living, dining and bedroom furniture supplier Bentley Designs recorded lower sales in 2018–19. It continued to generate profits and boosted its balance sheet with a capital contribution.
- Details
- CASE GOODS
Blackburn bedroom cabinet manufacturer Klever Furniture left creditors facing a shortfall of almost £650,000 according to new statutory filings.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
British bed and mattress vertical The Original Bed Co. is to launch into mainland Europe with the introduction of a dedicated German sales channel.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
Consumers were already minded to tighten the purse strings for high-value items like furniture ahead of the nationwide lockdown imposed by the Government a week ago, new data reveals.
- Details
- UPHOLSTERY
Upholstery manufacturing giant La-Z-Boy has taken steps to conserve cash including salary cuts and the furloughing of thousands of employees worldwide.
- Details
- UPHOLSTERY
National upholstery retailer Sofas & Stuff celebrated a decade in business last year, expanding its showroom network and booking six-figure profits.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
A serial investor in consumer brands has completed a buyout of high-end furniture and lifestyle retailer The Conran Shop, bringing an end to 47 years in charge for its founder.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
Embattled weekly payments furniture and electricals retailer BrightHouse has been placed into administration, putting 240 stores and 2,400 jobs at risk.
- Details
- EVENTS
Organisers of the U.K.'s leading summer trade furniture exhibition says they "fully support the need to prioritise the greater good" as the event venue was named a temporary NHS field hospital. Preparations for the July furniture event continue.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
Lombok, the mid-high end East-inspired furniture retailer, has been placed into administration for the third time. Insolvency professionals hope to find a buyer for the brand and other intellectual property.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
One of the U.K.'s largest retail park landlords says it has taken steps to support customers who are being hardest hit by the Covid-19 pandemic.
- Details
- TRADE & INDUSTRY
Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak has been urged not to forget furniture manufacturers when evaluating state support for U.K. industry amid the coronavirus pandemic.
- Details
- EVENTS
The organiser of the China International Furniture Fair (CIFF) has rescheduled the dates of its postponed spring exhibitions.
- Details
- REGIONAL
A Glasgow based upholstery, window-dressings and interior fabrics retailer has been placed into administration after closing its three stores and ceasing trading a week ago.
- Details
- EVENTS
Organisers of the Milan furniture fair (Salone del Mobile) have cancelled the rescheduled exhibition. It will now not take place at all in 2020.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
The number of retailers still delivering bulky furniture goods amid the coronavirus pandemic continues to fall, though some are sending delivery crews out to customers homes with heightened safety measures in place.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
The Swedish beds manufacturing conglomerate that lists British bedroom chain Feather & Black among its interests has re-platformed some of its manufacturing operations to help battle the coronavirus pandemic.
- Details
- FLOORCOVERINGS
Victoria, the diversified flooring producer and distributor with operations in multiple countries worldwide, says it can survive even the most severe scenarios presented by the coronavirus pandemic.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
Direct-to-consumer mattress brand Eve Sleep has doubled the length of time consumers have to return products free-of-charge to over six months.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
The National Bed Federation (NBF) and the British Furniture Confederation (BFC) are working together to provide clarity to industry over the support package available to businesses impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
The Sleep Council, the organisation that raises awareness of the importance of sleep and choosing the right mattress, has issued advice to families as they adjust to spending more time at home.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
James Keen will this spring become the new chief executive officer at privately-owned bed manufacturer Hypnos, succeeding Stephen Ward who is retiring after 13 years in the role. His appointment was announced as 2018–19 figures became available.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
Less than a third of all rent due from retailers at yesterday's Quarter Day dateline was paid, according to one of the U.K.'s largest retail landlords.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
The manufacturer of Dunlopillo branded mattresses in France has a new owner after the Paris Commercial Court approved its sale following an insolvency process.
- Details
- TRADE & INDUSTRY
BFM, the association for British Furniture Manufacturers, wants members to make contact to highlight the biggest issues they face because of the coronavirus pandemic after a Government call to arms.
- Details
- FLOORCOVERINGS
Headlam Group, Europe's largest floorcoverings distributor, says the opening of its new regional distribution centre has been delayed after European contractors were recalled due to travel restrictions.
- Details
- COMMUNITY
Hard hit employees whose welfare is affected by the spread of coronavirus should contact The Furniture Makers’ Company for support, the City of London livery company and industry charity says.
- Details
- UPHOLSTERY
DFS says it has put the brakes on almost all spending and has spelled out the cash impact of the enforced closure of its operations, saying it will cost the business millions of pounds each month.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
No known major U.K. furniture or floorcoverings retailers have decided to keep their stores open amid the unfolding coronavirus pandemic, falling into line with Government advice.
- Details
- SUPPLY & WHOLESALE
Some of Britain's largest upholstery and mattress manufacturers have decided to close their factories and stop delivering following the lockdown announced Monday night as the country tries to stem the spread of coronavirus.
- Details
- OPINION & ANALYSIS
With furniture stores shut for at least three weeks because of the coronavirus pandemic, taking payments online and the delivery of outstanding orders represent retailers' only opportunity to generate income.
- Details
- CORONAVIRUS CRISIS
Daily updates on the latest situation regarding the coronavirus pandemic and its impact on the furniture, flooring and furnishings trade.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
Direct-to-consumer mattress brand ensures "adequate coverage for the coming months."
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
Bricks-and-mortar furniture and floorcoverings retail will go into hibernation after the Prime Minister announced a U.K. lockdown as it grapples the coronavirus pandemic. But the Government has left the door open for those wishing to remain open.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
Retailers and other commercial tenants who cannot pay their rent because of coronavirus will be protected from eviction, the Government announced last night.
- Details
- FURNISHINGS & ACCENTS
Soft furnishings supplier Colefax Group has decided to cancel its interim dividend payment as a result of the uncertainty surround the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
Fashion-to-furnishings retailer Laura Ashley is to be placed into administration later today with the closure of almost half of its U.K. store portfolio with near immediate effect.
- Details
- REGIONAL
Two of the largest privately-owned furniture and beds retailers in the South East have opted to close stores amid the unfolding coronavirus crisis, among the first major independents in England to do so.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
John Lewis & Partners says online orders are ramping significantly but it will still need to buy less from suppliers as it adjusts to the impact of temporary store closures.
- Details
- REGIONAL
Andersons of Inverurie, one of the largest single-store furniture retailers in the U.K., last night closed its store to the public because of the coronavirus pandemic.
- Details
- TRADE & INDUSTRY
The Italian Government took further steps to try and slow the spread of coronavirus on Saturday night, ordering the closure of all non-essential factories.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
Food and general merchandise retailer Marks and Spencer said it would pivot more resources to its food business as sales in other categories fall sharply because of the coronavirus.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
John Lewis Partnership says it will temporarily close all of its John Lewis department stores because of the coronavirus pandemic.
- Details
- EVENTS
The South West Beds Show, organised by the South West Furniture Manufacturers' Agents and Representatives Federation, has been cancelled.
- Details
- BEDS & MATTRESSES
Bed maker Harrison Spinks has planted 90 trees at a local primary school near its Leeds HQ and has committed to plant even more at the beginning of the new season later this year.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
ScS, Britain's second largest upholstery specialist, has reiterated its readiness to cope with the coronavirus crisis but cautioned that many factors remain uncertain.
- Details
- OPINION & ANALYSIS
Few U.K. furniture retailers have yet closed their doors in response to the coronavirus pandemic but by now there cannot be a single one in the country that has not contemplated that prospect, enforced or otherwise.
- Details
- CASE GOODS
One of Eastern Europe's largest furniture manufacturers has closed all its production plants for the next few weeks, and says it could extend the shutdown even longer.
- Details
- RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
The vast majority British furniture and department store retailers have so far resisted making wholesale store closures despite footfall collapsing as consumers follow Government guidance to increase social distancing to try and halt coronavirus contagion.
- Details
- FLOORCOVERINGS
Carpetright, Britain's biggest floorcoverings retailer, is to sponsor Exeter City Football Club for three years starting from the beginning of next season.
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