Latest news with #homefurnishing
The Sun
a day ago
- Business
- The Sun
IKEA is shutting ANOTHER UK store in just a fortnight's time after ‘lessons learned' amid customer backlash
YET another IKEA store has announced it's shutting its doors and saying farewell - or farväl - to customers. Retail giant IKEA was founded in Sweden in 1943, and opened its first UK branch in Warrington, Cheshire, in 1987. The next Swedish store to pull the plug is the Aintree Plan and Order Point store in Liverpool. Set up in December 2022, the Aintree Racecourse Retail Park store was the first 'test and trial format' in the UK. The smaller Plan & Order Point store was dedicated to kitchen and bedroom planning, and offered customers home furnishing advice. IKEA explained the closure was 'a result of valuable learnings which will take the conceptual format in a direction to better suit the needs of UK customers'. A spokesperson for the retail giant expressed: 'There has been an increased demand for Click and Collect services, a desire to shop a smaller selection of home furnishing accessories, as well as the ability to return goods to physical IKEA units, something which, owing to the space available, the current location is unable to offer. 'To better service its customers, future Plan and Order Point openings, including in Dundee, Hull and York will offer these services. "IKEA also remains committed to trialling new formats including its upcoming small stores, one of which will open in Chester later this year.' Customers will be able to collect any purchases from Tesco Extra Birkenhead, Tesco Superstore Old Swan, the Warrington store or the upcoming smaller new Chester store. The disheartening retail news comes after the closure of IKEA Stockport in Merseyway Shopping Centre, which opened just two years ago. The retailer has confirmed that both Plan and Order points will be closing on June 16. The Sun takes a trip inside the new Ikea Oxford Street Other Plan and Order points, such as the ones in Dundee, York and Hull, will be adapted to meet those new demands and also include a small range of home furnishing accessories to buy. The news comes after IKEA opened its own hotel in the Canary Islands. Boasting cheap rooms, a swimming pool and breakfast, it also offers some of their most popular homeware items. Las Dunas de Santa Catalina Boutique House is a new two-star hotel owned by the interiors brand in Gran Canaria. Rooms start from £105 a night, which includes a continental breakfast, and works out to just over £50 a night for two people. 2 Why are retailers closing stores? RETAILERS have been feeling the squeeze since the pandemic, while shoppers are cutting back on spending due to the soaring cost of living crisis. High energy costs and a move to shopping online after the pandemic are also taking a toll, and many high street shops have struggled to keep going. However, additional costs have added further pain to an already struggling sector. The British Retail Consortium has predicted that the Treasury's hike to employer NICs from April will cost the retail sector £2.3billion. At the same time, the minimum wage will rise to £12.21 an hour from April, and the minimum wage for people aged 18-20 will rise to £10 an hour, an increase of £1.40. The Centre for Retail Research (CRR) has also warned that around 17,350 retail sites are expected to shut down this year. It comes on the back of a tough 2024 when 13,000 shops closed their doors for good, already a 28% increase on the previous year. Professor Joshua Bamfield, director of the CRR said: "The results for 2024 show that although the outcomes for store closures overall were not as poor as in either 2020 or 2022, they are still disconcerting, with worse set to come in 2025." It comes after almost 170,000 retail workers lost their jobs in 2024. End-of-year figures compiled by the Centre for Retail Research showed the number of job losses spiked amid the collapse of major chains such as Homebase and Ted Baker. It said its latest analysis showed that a total of 169,395 retail jobs were lost in the 2024 calendar year to date. This was up 49,990 – an increase of 41.9% – compared with 2023. It is the highest annual reading since more than 200,000 jobs were lost in 2020 in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced retailers to shut their stores during lockdowns. The centre said 38 major retailers went into administration in 2024, including household names such as Lloyds Pharmacy, Homebase, The Body Shop, Carpetright and Ted Baker. Around a third of all retail job losses in 2024, 33% or 55,914 in total, resulted from administrations. Experts have said small high street shops could face a particularly challenging 2025 because of Budget tax and wage changes. Professor Bamfield has warned of a bleak outlook for 2025, predicting that as many as 202,000 jobs could be lost in the sector. "By increasing both the costs of running stores and the costs on each consumer's household it is highly likely that we will see retail job losses eclipse the height of the pandemic in 2020."
Daily Mail
a day ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Shoppers say they 'sleep like a dream' on this affordable Dunelm mattress - grab it now for under £140
Dunelm has slashed the price of one of its best-rated mattresses, now reduced to just under £140 for a double. And it's flying off the shelves. The Fogarty Just Right Memory Foam Top Open Coil Mattress is now 20 per cent off in the big early summer sale at Dunelm. Available at an irresistibly low price, it's topped the bestseller charts for the British home furnishing store. And shoppers are hugely impressed with the quality. While most memory foam mattresses can go for well over £300, the Dunelm Fogarty Just Right Memory Foam Top Open Coil Mattress is proving to be a hugely popular buy, now priced at £135.20 for a double size. While nearly half the price of most brand's, the mattress is offering many of the same sleep-boosting credentials but for a fraction of the price. The open coil mattress has a memory foam top that moulds to your body's shape while the medium support is ideally suited for front and back sleepers. And shoppers are impressed with over 970 reviews and counting. Available to buy in five sizes, shoppers with all sized beds have found a reason to love the Fogarty Just Right Memory Foam Top Open Coil Mattress. A standard sprung mattress, also known as an open coil mattress, the Fogarty mattress has one continuous set of springs that works to evenly spread your body weight and reduce the build-up of pressure points. Better still, the memory foam top is designed to mould around your body contours creating a body-hugging feel. As a result, shoppers have commented on both the comforting and supportive feel. With edge-to-edge support and an eco-flex filling that adds an extra cushioning layer and hypo allergic fabric to help reduce any allergy triggers, it's no wonder shoppers are hailing this 'great value for money', reporting how they 'sleep like a dream'. Now on sale, the Fogarty Just Right Memory Foam Top Open Coil Mattress is expectedly selling fast, quickly working its way to the top of Dunelm's bestsellers list. Now priced at £135.20 for a double and £151.20 for a king, it is exceptionally well priced considering it comes with a ten year guarantee too. 'Sound sleep' wrote one impressed Dunelm shopper. 'Its turned out the best nights sleep that I have for quite some time, and the quality of the mattress is really out standing for the price could not find anything near it really pleased thanks.' Another agreed, adding: 'Amazing product for the price. I've spent more money on mattresses in the past, with less joy.' Decent and supportive for under £140, the consensus is that it's well-worth the investment particularly if your mattress is old and starting to sag. 'Considering my previous mattress cost £500, I'm very pleased with the level of comfort and support on this one. I like the inclusion of certified foam.' The Fogarty Just Right Memory Foam Top Open Coil Mattress is now on sale for 20 per cent off while stocks last at Dunelm.
The Sun
2 days ago
- Business
- The Sun
IKEA announces sudden closure of UK store that opened just two years ago after customer backlash
IKEA has announced it is closing down a UK store it opened just two years ago following a backlash from customers. The famous Swedish homewares retailer has confirmed the Plan and Order point at the Stockport Merseyway Shopping Centre will cease in just a fortnight's time on June 16. The store in Greater Manchester is a smaller outlet than its usual out-of-town locations and is focused on kitchen, bedroom and living room planning. The aim was to provide somewhere for customers to go to get advice and expertise on home furnishing and somewhere where they could design their ideal fittings and get individual 3D interior plans from the interior designers. According to IKEA, the decision to close the store permanently was made due to 'a result of valuable learnings' where the company recognised their customers wanted a different retail experience, more along the lines of Click and Collect and return services. While the Stockport branch will close for good, other Plan and Order points, such as the ones in Dundee, York and Hull, will be adapted to meet those new demands and also include a small range of home furnishing accessories to buy. The current Stockport customers are now being directed to the next nearest main IKEA store, the branch in Ashton-under-Lyne in Tameside. Locals can also now pick up their IKEA purchases from Tesco Extra in Stockport and the Tesco Extra in Stretford as part of Click and Collect. Salma Azad, IKEA area manager said: 'After careful evaluation, we've made the difficult decision to close the IKEA Plan and Order Point at Merseyway Shopping Centre. 'In the two years since opening, we've taken valuable learnings, including how our customers prefer to meet IKEA, and we'll take these insights into future openings, to serve shoppers in a more impactful way. 'I want to sincerely thank all of the customers that have shopped with us in this time. IKEA Manchester, a store locals know and love, will continue to be the closest hub for home planning, meatballs and everything in between.' Bosses had hoped the Plan and Order in Stockport would 'become more accessible and sustainable for customers in the north west'. I did a haul of the new Oxford Street Ikea whilst on my lunch break & I managed to kit out with bargains under £3 However, it did come under criticism from some shoppers. In a Facebook post about the closure, one person wrote: 'I'm not surprised to be honest. It is very small.' While a second added: 'It wasn't the right shop for that place, they'd have been better off setting up an IKEA homeware and food shop there!' A third critic said: 'Really don't know why it opened in the first place. Pointless.' The news comes after IKEA opened its own hotel in the Canary Islands. The location offers cheap rooms, a swimming pool and breakfast is included while also offering some of their most popular homeware items. Why are retailers closing stores? RETAILERS have been feeling the squeeze since the pandemic, while shoppers are cutting back on spending due to the soaring cost of living crisis. High energy costs and a move to shopping online after the pandemic are also taking a toll, and many high street shops have struggled to keep going. However, additional costs have added further pain to an already struggling sector. The British Retail Consortium has predicted that the Treasury's hike to employer NICs from April will cost the retail sector £2.3billion. At the same time, the minimum wage will rise to £12.21 an hour from April, and the minimum wage for people aged 18-20 will rise to £10 an hour, an increase of £1.40. The Centre for Retail Research (CRR) has also warned that around 17,350 retail sites are expected to shut down this year. It comes on the back of a tough 2024 when 13,000 shops closed their doors for good, already a 28% increase on the previous year. Professor Joshua Bamfield, director of the CRR said: "The results for 2024 show that although the outcomes for store closures overall were not as poor as in either 2020 or 2022, they are still disconcerting, with worse set to come in 2025." It comes after almost 170,000 retail workers lost their jobs in 2024. End-of-year figures compiled by the Centre for Retail Research showed the number of job losses spiked amid the collapse of major chains such as Homebase and Ted Baker. It said its latest analysis showed that a total of 169,395 retail jobs were lost in the 2024 calendar year to date. This was up 49,990 – an increase of 41.9% – compared with 2023. It is the highest annual reading since more than 200,000 jobs were lost in 2020 in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced retailers to shut their stores during lockdowns. The centre said 38 major retailers went into administration in 2024, including household names such as Lloyds Pharmacy, Homebase, The Body Shop, Carpetright and Ted Baker. Around a third of all retail job losses in 2024, 33% or 55,914 in total, resulted from administrations. Experts have said small high street shops could face a particularly challenging 2025 because of Budget tax and wage changes. Professor Bamfield has warned of a bleak outlook for 2025, predicting that as many as 202,000 jobs could be lost in the sector. "By increasing both the costs of running stores and the costs on each consumer's household it is highly likely that we will see retail job losses eclipse the height of the pandemic in 2020."
Daily Mail
28-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Couple who gambled their £24,000 life savings now have £12 million business
An Australian couple have revealed how they created a multi million business after taking a risk and investing their life savings. Alexandra Weller, who is now based in Hong Kong, realised there was a gap in the market for aesthetically pleasing rugs when she was shopping for one. At the same time, her husband Aaron was consulting for SEO company, and learnt that huge numbers of people were doing online searches looking for rugs. When this inspired the couple to ask people they knew about their experience when shopping for the furnishings, they discovered that many had negative stories to tell. With sizing that was confusing to understand, and colours that weren't quite right, rug shopping was not enjoyable for most. Alexandra told that she and Aaron realised there was a gap in the market - and this led to them starting their company Miss Amara in 2014. Their idea was to offer a better experience, and make it easier for customers to work out how the rugs would look in their own homes, by sharing pictures of the products in-situ, so shoppers could take a snap of the room the rug would go in, and see how it would look in the desired space. The couple, who invested $50,000 (£24,000) of their life savings into the company, implemented further ideas of how to offer a positive shopping experience. If customers were unhappy with the purchase, a full refund was offered, and the company would pay for a courier to pick up the rug. Speaking to Alexandra revealed how she would contact strangers online to ask if they would 'be willing to photograph our rugs in their stunning homes'. This, she explained, was not a marketing tactic, but 'because I genuinely wanted to show people what was possible'. She added that while this is now known as User-Generated Content and influencer marketing, back then, 'it was just a deep desire to help customers visualise the home of their dreams'. Being customer-focused has always been the company's main aim, and for Alexandra, this translated into ensuring that as many people as possible could enjoy their products. 'We kept hearing was that many people, especially pet owners and young families, felt excluded from owning beautiful things,' she explained. Keeping this in mind, they launched a pet-friendly range, featuring rugs that were stain-proof and easy to clean, making them popular with those who had pets as well as parents of young children. Their strategies worked, and 10 years after starting the brand, the couple employ around 80 people, and turned over $26 million (£12 million) last year. However, they didn't pay themselves a salary for five years, and even now, remain cautious as they are all too aware that business success isn't something to be taken for granted. Alexandra credited Aaron for keeping the business moving forward, describing him as 'a true entrepreneur – fearless and incredibly driven'. Setting up the brand was difficult, with the couple hitting a number of stumbling blocks, meaning Aaron's fearless style was essential. According to Alexandra, it was difficult to find people to work with them - and even when they did, they faced numerous objections. Among them, they were told it would be too expensive to offer their signature virtual reality tool - where customers can test how the product would look in their own homes - would be too expensive. However, Alexandra said that giving customers the ability to visualise the rug in their space 'transformed our conversion rate and far outweighed the cost'. In addition, their courier company said their returns policy would cost them the business - but as Alexandra said, 'fear and hesitation were the biggest blockers for customer', and so removing them was crucial. After facing these teething products, the brand has enjoyed major success - and the couple continue to develop new products. One of their recent popular launches is their range of 'rollie pollie playmats'. Talking about the line in a recent TikTok video, Alexandra said: 'When I was developing the playmat product, it was honestly spurred out of the same reason Miss Amara was born. 'I was looking for the perfect playmat in my lounge room, and I wanted the playmat to feel like something I could be proud of, something that I didn't have to put away when guests came over, something that effortlessly blended and elevated my space.' She added that she wanted it to be very soft, and because small children's 'little feet are very picky', comfort was the most important thing. Alexandra continued: 'One of my friends just pointed out that whenever my kid is in a room with a playmate, they will naturally gravitate towards the playmat, and they start jumping and rolling and they're having a great time, and I'm not stressing about it.'
Forbes
25-05-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Pottery Barn Memorial Day Sale: Save Up To 60% On A Home Refresh
Pottery Barn's Memorial Day sale is in full swing. This weekend, you can save up to 60% on its chic and traditional designs—plus take an additional 20% off clearance items. Whether you're looking to spruce up your outdoor space for summer or pick up a new couch for your living room, we've already spotted some great offers like 20% off the best-selling Carlisle Sofa and 44% off this Indio Eucalyptus Extendable Outdoor Dining Table. Save up to 60% on your summer home refresh during Pottery Barn's Memorial Day Sale. We've rounded up the best Pottery Barn Memorial Day deals and organized them by room, from mid-century modern staples to thoughtfully designed accent pieces that can elevate your home's ambience. We'll be keeping our eyes peeled for more deals as they roll in. Pottery Barn Pottery Barn Pottery Barn Pottery Barn Pottery Barn Pottery Barn Pottery Barn Pottery Barn Pottery Barn Pottery Barn Pottery Barn Pottery Barn Pottery Barn Pottery Barn Pottery Barn Pottery Barn Pottery Barn
