9 DEPARTMENT STORE 01 2 YEARBOOK EDITED BY Rebekah Killigrew & Jessica Bacon FOREWORD BY Minnie Moll, Jarrold 9 DEPARTMENT STORE 01 from the editor... 2 YEARBOOK Welcome to the 2019 edition of the Department EDITOR Store Yearbook. It’s no secret that the past year Rebekah Killigrew has been incredibly challenging for the retail rebekah.killigrew@mediaone .co.uk industry, with reports revealing that the high street faced it’s toughest trading climate since the EDITOR recession a decade ago. We watched as major Jessica Bacon department stores were forced to close many of their branches, and strategic restructures and
[email protected] acquisitions were hot topics. PRODUCTION It was a year full of drama, from falling footfalls and record redundancies, to temperamental weather affecting sales and experimental retail Louise Stupples attempting to lift them. Difficult decisions were at the forefront of most
[email protected] industry news, however there were some triumphant shifts, such as an influx of pop-up partnerships and an increase in clicks-to-bricks (online ACCOUNT MANAGER retailers branching out into physical stores). And when major player Jo Ollerenshaw House of Fraser fell into administration, Sports Direct’s Mike Ashley swooped in and saved the department store with a £90 million deal.
[email protected] With the Sports Direct CEO already having significant shares invested in CREDIT CONTROL Debenhams (and recent talks of further investment), could the retail tycoon be a modern-day hero of the industry? Carole Todd As a result of this year’s events, I am delving deeper into the sector in
[email protected] our Industry Insights with our contributors providing knowledgeable and invaluable commentary to all aspects of department stores, including ADMINISTRATION design,in-store experience and brands.