In today’s InternetRetailing newsletter, we’re considering the early results from peak trading season 2019, now that Black Friday and Cyber Monday are behind us. Our latest Peak 2019 round-up looks at how retailers approached Cyber Monday, at how trading went on Black Friday – both online and in-store – and how different retailers are approaching the thorny question of Christmas delivery deadlines.
The Boohoo Group is celebrating a record Black Friday, according to its latest trading update, and we have news of the first November retail sales figures – online and across channels – from the BRC and Barclaycard.
Early conclusions from these early results suggest that sales grew only slightly in November – in samples taken before Black Friday fully arrived. But it seems that once Black Friday arrived, sales have beaten expectations, with shoppers buying both online and in-store – no doubt tempted by the many and deep discounts that were on offer. It could well be that shoppers have now spent their money – if Barclaycard’s thinking that consumers are keeping it frugal this Christmas is correct. But there are still several weeks of pre-Christmas trading left to go and retailers will be hoping that spending continues to stay buoyant, rather than proving to be a Black Friday flash in the pan.
Today we report on how Brexit uncertainty appears to be affecting retailers’ and manufacturers’ supply chains and we have guest analysis from Chris Haighton of Shop Direct, which operates Very.co.uk and littlewoods.com, and who argues that it’s time for retailers to think creatively about every stage of their logistics operation in order to ensure the best customer experience.
In our guest comment slot, Michael Patterson of DynamicAction asks what global retailers can learn from the UK’s nimble mindset as they look to weather the current industry storm.
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