Main Image: Dunelm

PRShots Roundup brings you the latest retail news from JYSK, Waitrose, M&S, Lookfantastic, Morrisons, Sephora, Djerf Avenue and John Lewis. Plus, the fashion brands offering Black Friday alternatives, Instagram best practices for ads and organic content and more.  

THE LATEST RETAIL INDUSTRY NEWS

JYSK celebrates “record-breaking” turnover in UK and Ireland

Danish furniture retailer JYSK’s UK and Ireland turnover was up 13.6% to a record-breaking €120m and increased customer numbers by more than 20% to almost 2.5m.

Christmas spending set to hit three-year high

Families are expected to spend an average of £760 on Christmas this year, that's 26% up on the £602 spend last year, and up on the £694 spent in 2022.

November footfall sees ‘significant’ increase

Retail footfall in November saw a 2.1% increase, its greatest month on month increase since 2013 as half term boosted traffic, according to MRI Software.

Waitrose opens first convenience store in six years

Waitrose has opened its first new convenience store in six years, in a twin bid to expand its store estate footprint and build on its partnerships with Shell and Welcome Break.

M&S and Kingfisher are among the retailers circling Homebase stores

Two of the UK’s biggest retailers are among the names circling a number of Homebase stores following the DIY retailer’s collapse into administration just weeks ago.

Typhoo Tea falls into administration after 121 years

Vapes and batteries maker Supreme says it is in talks over rescue tea brand Typhoo, which was founded in 1903.

TRENDS, SUSTAINABILITY, STRATEGY AND TECHNOLOGY

The fashion brands offering alternatives to Black Friday sales

Drapers speaks to fashion brands choosing not to participate in discounting this Black Friday and explores the alternatives they are launching like Repair Friday to Blue Friday.

21 Instagram best practices for ads and organic content

Creating a consistent style, planning content, and knowing when to post is key. Follow Hootsuite’s Instagram best practices and grow your account in 2025.

Why the high street needs to look beyond retail for their future

The High Streets: Life Beyond Retail report from the House of Lords’ Built Environment Committee says we need to get over our obsession with retail on high streets and look to a different future.

Why fast fashion is an existential threat to the French textile industry

Fast fashion has been threatening France's textile industry for decades, obliterating jobs and triggering unfair competition, according to a report published by the Les Amis de la Terre NGO.

Lookfantastic’s beauty AI tool set to generate a spike in sales over Black Friday

THG-owned Lookfantastic expects its beauty AI tool to generate a spike in sales over Black Friday as it has seen a surge in users since its launch last year.

Morrisons shifts to in-store fulfilment with Ocado tech

Morrisons will utilise long-standing tech partner Ocado’s fulfilment centres to help drive its move to more in-store fulfilment as the bricks-and-mortar grocer reassesses its online operations.

Movopack secures funding to launch circular e-commerce packaging

Movopack, the Italian-based company providing e-commerce platforms with circular and sustainable packaging, has raised £2m in a seed funding round to support its UK launch.

London Fashion Week to Ban Exotic Skins

London Fashion week will not allow brands to use crocodile, snake or other wild animal leathers in the collections they show there, extending a ban on fur introduced last year.

BRAND NEWS

Sephora opens seventh UK store

Sephora has opened its seventh bricks-and-mortar store in the UK at Bluewater shopping centre in Kent, as the beauty emporium continues its rollout across the country since its relaunch in 2022.

John Lewis adds The Cotswold Company to stable of third-party brands

The Cotswold Company’s has inked a partnership with John Lewis to sell a collection of the homeware retailer‘s furniture on the John Lewis website and in-store at Peter Jones.

M&S strikes gold with Mark Wright and Spencer Matthews Christmas menswear campaign

Marks & Spencer has seen a Christmas social campaign featuring former TOWIE star Mark Wright and Made in Chelsea personality Spencer Matthews receive 12m views and 250,000 "likes".

Matilda Djerf’s Djerf Avenue is heading to London

Djerf Avenue, founded by Swedish Content Creator Matilda Djerf, is celebrating its fifth birthday by hosting a pop-up in London. The first-ever physical store presence in the UK.

AND FINALLY

PRShots Retail Christmas Adverts 2024

All the Christmas Adverts so far - all 43 of them - in one place include Moonpig, Sports Direct, JD Sports, Burberry, John Lewis and many, many more!

PRSHOTS TOP 10 SEARCHES

What were our users searching for on PRShots Week ending November 22^nd 2024?

1/ Christmas

2/ AW24

3/ Leopard

4/ SS25

5/ Sequin

6/ Candle

7/ Cushion

8/ Bathroom

9/ Lighting  

10/ Sofa

NEW BRANDS TO PRSHOTS

Ernest Jones the jewellers came from modest beginnings, launched in 1949 it has grown from a single store in London's Oxford Street to a national chain of 100+ jewellery stores.

H Samuel is a jeweller with a long history. Started in 1862 the brand continues to this day with a mix of jewellery and watches, that are affordable and feature trend-led styles.

Curlsmith was launched in 2018 and has gone from strength to strength. It was born out of a community of people with textured hair sharing their haircare tips, home remedies and frustrations with products on the market not made specifically for their needs and has grown into a product range sold worldwide.

Frangipani was established in 2010 and produces men’s shirts and accessories crafted from high-quality materials and featuring bold prints or subtle contrasts. With each shirt embodying a perfect balance of comfort and elegance.

Mission C founder Qes discovered that CBD oil helped his Grandad - who was living with dementia - feel calm and contented, he knew it could help others too. So he created a natural and accessible remedy for people looking to improve their quality of life.

Saywood was created in 2020 by Harriet Saywood-Bellisario, who graduated from the London College of Fashion before working at Paul Smith, Richard Nicoll and Label/Mix. The brand specialises in beautiful edits of wardrobe essentials and classics contemporised with unexpected details made to be worn and re-worn.

Jellycat is the brand of the moment and has been around for a quarter of a century. Over this time, their unmistakable characters have gained the affection of millions across 77 countries.

HELP WITH YOUR IMAGE SEARCHES

The latest images on PRShots are found here https://www.prshots.com/whatsnew why not bookmark the page for a regular feed of the latest images on PRShots!! You can select the latest images from the last 24 hours, week, or month.

BRANDS WITH NEW IMAGES

Clothing, beauty and accessories

Barbour has a new range of gift accessories for Christmas.

Oliver Bonas has new February uploads of jewellery, women’s clothing, bags, shoes and accessories as well as new ranges for the New Year and SS25.

Matalan has a new menswear collaboration with Taylor & Wright, new last-minute Christmas gifts, transitional ranges, Valentine pyjamas, a new Disney and Lilo and Stitch Stitchmas collaboration, a menopause lingerie range plus a new collaboration with The Lion King, Marvel, and Paddington.

New Look has more new winter outfits, winter and occasion wear outfits for women, plus ranges of womenswear including coats, jumpers, skirts and tops.

Roman Originals has more AW24 imagery, new Petite, Curve and Dusk campaign ranges of womenswear for cosy evenings and big events, new nightwear ranges with pyjamas and cosy dressing gowns.

John Lewis has new clothing and accessory gift ideas for all ages for Christmas.

Cotton Traders has new SS25 outfits, Christmas jumpers, cosy womenswear and menswear for AW24 including jumpers, cardigans and coats.

National Trust has new accessories including socks, hats, jewellery, scarves, bags and sunglasses for SS25.

Primark has new accessories, a new ski range, a new Rita Ora collaboration of clothing, shoes, bags, jewellery and accessories, and new tie-ups with Wicked, The Grinch, Sonic the Movie and Ashleigh Huish.

Fable England has new core jewellery ranges.

M&S has new menswear and womenswear from its Christmas adverts, a Bella Freud bag collaboration, the Christmas beauty advent calendar, party outfits for all the family, Christmas clothing, accessories and lingerie sets as well as post-surgery bras, the Dress the Nation range with Vernon Kay and AJ Odudu.

TK Maxx has SS25 clothing, accessory and makeup ranges including crochet outfits, Christmas gift-guides for men, women, kids and pets, plus new menswear and womenswear ranges including coats, jackets and hoodies.

Very has new V by very ranges of clothes and footwear including metallics, sequins and faux fur, a new Michelle Keegan collaboration, new Grinch-themed pyjamas for all the family, stocking filler accessories, and partywear ranges.

Monsoon has new designer ranges, plus clothes, shoes, boots, bags and accessories for Christmas, new edits for women and kids, bags, shoes, jewellery and accessories.

River Island has a Christmas Gift Guide and Christmas jumpers, plus new Premium and Winter Reds collections, along with party outfits and accessories for the Christmas season for men, women and children.

George at Asda has a Children in Need range, women’s and menswear for Christmas occasions and parties, Children in Need Christmas outfits, a new Roksanda and Tickled Pink collaboration clothing ranges.

Peacocks has new Christmas jumpers and fashion, Caprice Christmas pyjama collections, new womenswear, a new Louise Redknapp AW and Christmas Edit, a Michael Owen collaboration and new AW24 womenswear and jewellery.

Fatface has a new Copper & Black range of womenswear, new menswear, and kids clothing, plus Christmas clothing, accessories and jewellery for all the family plus gifts for under £50, plus more AW24 Edit ranges of womenswear. 

Celtic &Co has new Christmas accessories, jumpers and cosy outfits from the winter.

Bonmarché has new Christmas jumpers and partywear, lingerie ranges, new jewellery and accessory ranges for Christmas and the winter and AW24 clothing ranges.

See additional new clothing and accessories images from

Scamp & Dude Peachaus Dune London Accessorize London Grace Deichmann Shoe Zone Online Home Shop

Home, garden and food

Oliver Bonas has new furniture and home accessories including mirrors, lighting and tableware for the New Year and SS25.

John Lewis has new home gift ideas for Christmas.

Online Home Shop has new side tables and chest of drawers, rugs, bedding, foot warmers, hot water bottles, heated pads, body wraps, plus bar stools, mirrors, cuddle cushions, shaped pillows and bolsters.

Quorn Stone has new natural stone and tumbled herringbone cobbles outdoor ranges, marble ranges for the bathroom and kitchen and Limestone cobbles for outside.

National Trust has new gifts for the home and the garden for SS25, plus decorations for Easter.

Dunelm has a new Sophie Robinson collaboration and its SS25 range of bedroom and living room furniture, soft furnishings and kitchenware.

Sofology has new SS25 Serene, Premiere and Westwood ranges of sofas, chairs and recliners.

Fritz Fryer has new antique lighting ranges, kitchen lighting ranges, as well as lamps and lights for every room in the home.

TK Maxx has a new 1960s-inspired summer range of kitchenware and furniture for the office, plus new gifting ranges, a wellness range for the New Year, Christmas gift-guides for the home.

Designers Guild has new Studio Stripes patterns for SS25.

Jan Constantine has new cushions for SS25 and Valentine’s day.

M&S has a new Nordic notes Christmas decoration ranges, National Gallery collaboration, stocking filler Christmas images and new Fearne Cotton Happy Place range, Christmas homeware including tableware, soft furnishings, candles and diffusers, Christmas decorations, homeware and bedding ranges.

Ivyline has new planters, pots for its indoor living ranges.

Cult Furniture has a new collaboration with Daniela Tasca.

Fatface has a collaboration with homeless charity Shelter, Christmas decorations for the Christmas tree and homeware gifts.

George Home has a new Christmas decorations for the tree, tableware, soft furnishings and trees, Stacey Solomon Christmas and Autumn collaborations on cookware, bedding, dining, and homeware.

Primark has new Wicked and Grinch themed gifts for kids and pets, furniture, Christmas decorations and homeware gifts, AW24 furniture, homeware, bedding, diffusers and candles.

Matalan has SS25 homeware images for the dining room, bedroom, bathroom and garden, plus Christmas gifts and decorations, a new Connie the Cockapoo range, AW24 soft furnishings and gifts, a new AW Cosy Shop range of bedding and soft furnishings, Christmas bedding ranges and presents for pets.

Treats by Mars has new Galaxy ranges of hot chocolate. 

Cutter & Squidge has a new boxed cookie range.

Homesense has new Christmas gift ideas for family and pets as well as new Christmas decorations.

See additional new home images from

Hobbycraft The Gluttonous Gardener Arran Sense of Scotland Monsoon Habitat Home Bargains Very B&M Rebel Walls Dobbies Garden Centres Cambridge Imprint

DIARY

PRShots Retail Calendar Alerts

Days until Christmas – 26

Days until Valentine’s Day – 77

Days until Easter - 142
 

How to get your brand in the media in December

Christmas is nearly over by now for the media; there are just a few dailies, weeklies, websites and influencers doing last-minute gift guides for Christmas but for most print media it’s the New Year, and what’s happening in 2025.  

You should be uploading SS25 outfits and home goods for those “A new you for 2025” and “Redecorate for 2025” issues, so athleisure, outdoor healthy sporty images will all be useful, plus anything for the home. 

As always don’t forget to add keywords – New Year, Gifts, Spring, Christmas, Xmas, Holidays, Winter plus all those words beloved of home magazines like cosy, cosiness, hygge, wellbeing.

Clothing wise the media are still looking for going out outfits for Christmas and New Year, so party wear, party dresses, nightwear and also winter clothing like jumpers, scarves, bobble hats, beanies, cardigans, coatigans, jackets, coats are still being looked for. So, make sure that you have plenty of images in those categories uploaded and labelled with as many of those words as you can.

You can also start to look at holiday clothing and outfits for when the weather gets a little warmer so make sure SS25 is flagged on your drops even if they’re not yet available until 2025 – If they’re not on sale until Jan or Feb then use the On Sale date field to flag this up. You can either add a specific date, 2/2/25 or if you’re not sure then you can use the text “available first week in Feb.”  

If you’re a PRShots brand user and you need more ideas, then take a look at the keywords that media are searching for on PRShots and try and add those in.

If you’re looking for more hooks to help promote your brand and products, then see the list of days, weeks and fortnights below.

December Diary - Weeks/Months

December is all about Christmas and New Year events, but it’s also AIDS Awareness Month, Universal Human Rights Month, Decembeard, and No Gender December.

Additionally, the 1st week (2nd-6th) is UK Charity Week, and Kwanzaa (26th - 1st Jan).

December Diary - Days

1^st – World AIDS Day

1^st – Advent Sunday/First Sunday of Advent 

2^nd – St Andrew’s Day (Scotland)

2^nd – Cyber Monday

2^nd – Four years since the second-lockdown ended in the UK 

2^nd – English Breakfast Day

3^rd – National day of giving (US) 

6^th – St Nicholas Day

7^th – Returns will start to come back from Black Friday sales – be ready for them

7^th – UK Small Business Saturday

10^th – Human Rights Day

12^th – Christmas Jumper Day (See https://www.savethechildren.org.uk/christmas-jumper-day)

18^th – Stilton Day

19^th – National Regifting Day 

21^st – Winter Solstice 

21^st – Super Saturday/Panic Saturday

25^th – Christmas Day

25^th – Hanukkah begins

26^th – Boxing Day

31^st – New Year’s Eve

NB - All dates have been checked, but some events may change due to unforeseen circumstances or have not been fully confirmed for 2024 by the authorities controlling the event(s).