Having a quick review of the retail news this morning to post yet more interesting topics there appears to be a lack of negativity. Are we on our way out of the black hole of despair? Is the world's media struggling to find significant loss to write about within the retail sector?
Please post your thoughts on this as I am receiving strong indications from retail executives that there is some positivity out there!
Monday, 7 September 2009
Saturday, 5 September 2009
Region is duty-free bright spot
The Middle East is the only region to post an increase in duty-free sales for the first half of this year, while most of the world suffered double-digit losses, according to an independent industry research firm.
Yngve Bia, the president of Generation Research, based in Sweden, said global travel retail sales in the first six months of this year fell 7.4 per cent compared with the same period last year, to US$19.9 billion (Dh73.09bn) from $21.5bn.
But sales in the Middle East rose by 2.6 per cent in that same period, partly driven by growing passenger traffic and local investments in travel and tourism infrastructure, Mr Bia said.
?The Middle East, they have been capturing market share for the past 10, 15 years,? he said. ?But now it?s quite remarkable that one region in the world has managed to record an increase when the rest of the world has suffered.?
Travel retail sales in Europe and the Asia-Pacific were the worst hit, with falls of 17.4 per cent and 18.9 per cent respectively. In Africa, sales dropped 15.6 per cent, while in the Americas the numbers fell by 8.2 per cent.
Dubai Duty Free, at Dubai International Airport, held on to its title of number one retailer in the world based on total sales in the first half, Mr Bia said.
The airport retailer, which accounts for 60 per cent of all duty-free sales in the Middle East, sold $1.1bn worth of merchandise last yearFrom January to August 18, sales at the retailer were on track with last year?s figures, said Colm McLoughlin, the managing director of Dubai Duty Free.
Sales had fallen 4 per cent in the first five months of the year, but began to recover afterwards, Mr McLoughlin said. They were up 6 per cent in May and June, and up between 7 and 8 per cent last month, he said.
Sales from January to August 18 this year totalled Dh2.4bn, down just 0.8 per cent from Dh2.41bn in the same period last year, Mr McLoughlin said.
The relatively strong sales stems from the increase of passengers, with traffic through Dubai airport up 6 per cent from January to the end of July, he said.
Mr McLoughlin said he expected Dubai Duty Free to keep its title as the top-selling travel retailer, with a sales increase of 5 per cent over last year.
?Given that our sales are almost on par with 2008 figures, I am confident that the same will hold true by the end of the year,? he said.
?The duty-free business in the region is doing well, which is encouraging for the industry as a whole.?
Duty-free retail in Abu Dhabi is also growing, with sales from January to the end of last month up 5.8 per cent compared with the same period last year, said Dan Cappell, the vice president of non-aeronautical revenue and business development at the capital?s airport.
That was despite two months when passengers arriving in Abu Dhabi?s new terminal 3 had to bypass the duty-free shops because of construction, Mr Cappell said.
Terminal 3?s new retail wing, with 2,600 square metres focusing on luxury and boosting the airport?s total duty-free area by 38 per cent, opened in April.
Mr Cappell expects the growth to continue, and is optimistic that passenger growth at Abu Dhabi?s airport will average between 8 and 9 per cent each month for the rest of the year, he said.
Mr Bia expects the remainder of the year will be tough for the rest of the world?s duty-free and travel retailers, and sales will not hit last year?s levels of $37bn.
?I think they will be about $2bn behind, which means a decrease of about 5.5 per cent,? he said. ?We will see an improvement in the second half, but that?s comparing it to an extremely poor fourth quarter last year.?
Yngve Bia, the president of Generation Research, based in Sweden, said global travel retail sales in the first six months of this year fell 7.4 per cent compared with the same period last year, to US$19.9 billion (Dh73.09bn) from $21.5bn.
But sales in the Middle East rose by 2.6 per cent in that same period, partly driven by growing passenger traffic and local investments in travel and tourism infrastructure, Mr Bia said.
?The Middle East, they have been capturing market share for the past 10, 15 years,? he said. ?But now it?s quite remarkable that one region in the world has managed to record an increase when the rest of the world has suffered.?
Travel retail sales in Europe and the Asia-Pacific were the worst hit, with falls of 17.4 per cent and 18.9 per cent respectively. In Africa, sales dropped 15.6 per cent, while in the Americas the numbers fell by 8.2 per cent.
Dubai Duty Free, at Dubai International Airport, held on to its title of number one retailer in the world based on total sales in the first half, Mr Bia said.
The airport retailer, which accounts for 60 per cent of all duty-free sales in the Middle East, sold $1.1bn worth of merchandise last yearFrom January to August 18, sales at the retailer were on track with last year?s figures, said Colm McLoughlin, the managing director of Dubai Duty Free.
Sales had fallen 4 per cent in the first five months of the year, but began to recover afterwards, Mr McLoughlin said. They were up 6 per cent in May and June, and up between 7 and 8 per cent last month, he said.
Sales from January to August 18 this year totalled Dh2.4bn, down just 0.8 per cent from Dh2.41bn in the same period last year, Mr McLoughlin said.
The relatively strong sales stems from the increase of passengers, with traffic through Dubai airport up 6 per cent from January to the end of July, he said.
Mr McLoughlin said he expected Dubai Duty Free to keep its title as the top-selling travel retailer, with a sales increase of 5 per cent over last year.
?Given that our sales are almost on par with 2008 figures, I am confident that the same will hold true by the end of the year,? he said.
?The duty-free business in the region is doing well, which is encouraging for the industry as a whole.?
Duty-free retail in Abu Dhabi is also growing, with sales from January to the end of last month up 5.8 per cent compared with the same period last year, said Dan Cappell, the vice president of non-aeronautical revenue and business development at the capital?s airport.
That was despite two months when passengers arriving in Abu Dhabi?s new terminal 3 had to bypass the duty-free shops because of construction, Mr Cappell said.
Terminal 3?s new retail wing, with 2,600 square metres focusing on luxury and boosting the airport?s total duty-free area by 38 per cent, opened in April.
Mr Cappell expects the growth to continue, and is optimistic that passenger growth at Abu Dhabi?s airport will average between 8 and 9 per cent each month for the rest of the year, he said.
Mr Bia expects the remainder of the year will be tough for the rest of the world?s duty-free and travel retailers, and sales will not hit last year?s levels of $37bn.
?I think they will be about $2bn behind, which means a decrease of about 5.5 per cent,? he said. ?We will see an improvement in the second half, but that?s comparing it to an extremely poor fourth quarter last year.?
Carrefour post $58 Million Loss
French supermarket giant Carrefour, ranked world number two, said today it had slipped into the red for the first half of the year. Although in difficult times the firm still confirmed its 2009 earnings targets.
The company, second only to Wal-Mart of the United States, posted a net loss of ?58 million (Dh305.68m) in the six months to June after taking exceptional charges of ?511m.
Operating profit fell 27.6 per cent from a year earlier to ?1.01 billion.
The results reflect both a difficult environment and the company?s strategic choices as it positions itself going ahead, said finance director Pierre Bouchut.
If the exceptional charges were stripped out, net earnings were down 42.4 per cent to ?415m, Carrefour said.
Analyst forecasts had been for a net profit of around ?100m after exceptional charges of ?550m.
Carrefour, which has 11 stores in the UAE, said it still expected a 2009 operating profit before exceptional items of ?2.7 - 2.8bn if current trends and sales continued.
It also confirmed its target to secure cost savings of ?4.5bn by 2012, with ?212m achieved in the first half this yearCarrefour said sales had held up well in the six months, with revenue down 1.6 per cent from a year earlier but up 1.9 per cent if fuel, exchange effects and seasonal-adjustments were taken into account.
?We are a good way towards achieving our 2009 objectives, towards carrying out our transformation plan,? the Carrefour head Lars Olofsson said.
source- thenational.ae
The company, second only to Wal-Mart of the United States, posted a net loss of ?58 million (Dh305.68m) in the six months to June after taking exceptional charges of ?511m.
Operating profit fell 27.6 per cent from a year earlier to ?1.01 billion.
The results reflect both a difficult environment and the company?s strategic choices as it positions itself going ahead, said finance director Pierre Bouchut.
If the exceptional charges were stripped out, net earnings were down 42.4 per cent to ?415m, Carrefour said.
Analyst forecasts had been for a net profit of around ?100m after exceptional charges of ?550m.
Carrefour, which has 11 stores in the UAE, said it still expected a 2009 operating profit before exceptional items of ?2.7 - 2.8bn if current trends and sales continued.
It also confirmed its target to secure cost savings of ?4.5bn by 2012, with ?212m achieved in the first half this yearCarrefour said sales had held up well in the six months, with revenue down 1.6 per cent from a year earlier but up 1.9 per cent if fuel, exchange effects and seasonal-adjustments were taken into account.
?We are a good way towards achieving our 2009 objectives, towards carrying out our transformation plan,? the Carrefour head Lars Olofsson said.
source- thenational.ae
Friday, 4 September 2009
Dubai, Abu Dhabi gold retail sales take a hit in Aug
Gold jewellery sales in Dubai fell around 30 percent in August, compared with a year earlier, as high gold prices and an economic downturn deterred buyers, retailers said on Thursday.
Dubai's gold retailers are seeing sale volumes drop as prices of the metal are boosted by institutional funds seeking a safe haven for their assets during the global economic slowdown.
"Our sales in August have dropped by around 30 percent from last year because the price of gold is too high for (retail) consumers during this crisis," said Sanjay Brahatti, co-owner of Al Khaledyah Jewellery, which is based in Dubai's old gold souk and has five branches.
"And if things continue like this over the coming two months, we are thinking about cutting down the number of branches to ease costs," he said.
full story at :
http://www.arabianbusiness.com/566717-dubai-gold-sales-drop-as-price-remains-high---trade
Dubai's gold retailers are seeing sale volumes drop as prices of the metal are boosted by institutional funds seeking a safe haven for their assets during the global economic slowdown.
"Our sales in August have dropped by around 30 percent from last year because the price of gold is too high for (retail) consumers during this crisis," said Sanjay Brahatti, co-owner of Al Khaledyah Jewellery, which is based in Dubai's old gold souk and has five branches.
"And if things continue like this over the coming two months, we are thinking about cutting down the number of branches to ease costs," he said.
full story at :
http://www.arabianbusiness.com/566717-dubai-gold-sales-drop-as-price-remains-high---trade
Thursday, 3 September 2009
Divisional Manager - Furniture
Divisional manager required to 2500 BD. Furniture and regional experience a must.
CV's to neil@globalretailrecruitment.com
CV's to neil@globalretailrecruitment.com
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