Main Image: John Lewis

PRShots Roundup brings you the latest retail news from Primark, M&S, Home Bargains, The Cotswold Company, ProCook, Mamas & Papas, Topps Tiles, Seasalt, Sweaty Betty and Next. Plus, why linear TV is still a force to be reckoned with, why FAQs should be your go-to marketing tool and more.  

THE LATEST RETAIL INDUSTRY NEWS

M&S had strong Christmas for food, says NIQ

Figures from NIQ show Marks & Spencer's food business was up 6.8% in the four weeks to Dec. 28 and its market share rose to a record 4.8%.

Home Bargains profits surge

Home Bargains sales were up 11% to £4.2bn, with pre-tax profits up 35% to £454.8m in the year to 30 June and plans to expand its 617 stores to over 800.

The Cotswold Company outshines market with 22% Christmas sales boost

The Cotswold Company sales were up 22% to £19.9m over the period 28 Oct – 29 Dec with online sales – which account for 77% of its sales- up 13%.

ProCook sales soared over Christmas

ProCook sales were up 11.2% to £25.6m for the 12 weeks to Jan 5, 2025, with retail and online revenues up 12.4% and 9.2% respectively and plans to continue with its store expansion.

Mamas & Papas sees record sales

Mamas & Papas group sales were up 5% in the quarter to 29 Dec, with retail sales up 8% and up 13% during the week of Black Friday with plans to open 20 new stores in the new year.

Topps Tiles has returned to sales growth as CEO announces retirement

Topps Tiles sales for the quarter to Dec 28 were up 4.6% increase and during the most recent five-week period, sales jumped 12.9% year on year.

Seasalt sees ‘impressive’ sales growth

Seasalt recorded “impressive sales” up 10% year on year in the five weeks to Dec 30 and is on track to deliver another year of double-digit revenue growth.

Sweaty Betty results dented by parent company's reorganisation

Sweaty Betty sales for 2023 were down to £144.25m from £167.72m with EBITDA down to a loss of £6.37m from one of just under £131k.

Shein accused of ‘wilful ignorance’ in row over workers’ rights

Shein has been accused of “wilful ignorance” after MPs were left “horrified” when the fast fashion giant failed to answer questions on whether forced labour exists in its supply chain.

TRENDS, SUSTAINABILITY, STRATEGY AND TECHNOLOGY

Why linear TV is still a force to be reckoned with in retail

Watching linear TV may seem very 2010, but a surprising number of US consumers still tune in to non-streaming TV services – and they are second screen online shopping while they do so.

Optimising your post-holiday returns for customer retention

For online retailers, handling returns isn’t just a logistical challenge, it’s also a critical opportunity to win customer loyalty and streamline operations.

Why FAQs should be your go-to marketing tool

Frequently asked questions aren’t just for customer support. They’re the backbone of clear, consistent marketing communication.

The Christmas trading 2024 retail league table

Retail Week takes a detailed look at how retailers fared during the critical 2024/25 Christmas trading period with their league table benchmarking sales performance across the industry.

How will the UK economy perform in 2025?

The economy has shown few signs of life since June and business surveys since October's Budget have painted an incredibly bleak picture of the year ahead.

PEOPLE, MOVERS AND SHAKERS

John Lewis chief customer officer steps away after three years

John Lewis’ chief customer officer Charlotte Lock has stepped down after three years in the role, she has announced on LinkedIn.

BRAND NEWS

Primark launches biggest-ever athleisure collection for 2025

Primark has launched its biggest-ever athletic performance collection, marking a major expansion of its athleisure offering for 2025.

Next to trial self-service tills

Next will begin trialling self-service tills in the next couple of months to improve store efficiencies as it looks to mitigate the incoming £67m added to its wage bill following tax increases.

eBay UK is back as Love Island: All Stars headline sponsor

eBay UK has announced it once again to be the headline sponsor for ITV2 and ITVX’s second-ever Love Island: All Stars series.

Wolverine Worldwide to grow Cat Footwear in the UK

Wolverine Worldwide, the global footwear licensee for Cat Footwear, has partnered with British footwear distributor Chapters Brand Group to grow the Cat Footwear brand in the UK.

Morleys to close Tooting department store after 70 years

Independent department store Morleys is closing the doors to its Tooting branch on 30 April after 70 years of trading.

AND FINALLY

Cash makes surprise comeback

Cash usage had risen for the third year in a row with Nationwide seeing early 33m withdrawals made from its ATMs last year, a 4.6% increase on 2023 and up almost 29% on 2021.

PRSHOTS TOP 10 SEARCHES

What were our users searching for on PRShots Week ending January 3^rd 2025?

1/ SS25

2/ Valentine

3/ Leopard

4/ Wedding

5/ Beauty

6/ Mocha

7/ Wellness

8/ Home

9/ Shoes  

10/ Lingerie

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

Fatface has new SS25 jewellery, accessories and clothes for men and women.

Matalan has new NFL clothing ranges, Valentine pyjamas, athleisure wear, a new transitional style edit, a menswear collaboration with Taylor & Wright, transitional ranges and a menopause lingerie range.

Monsoon has new Jan-Feb campaigns and bridal wear plus SS25 womenswear ranges including holiday and beachwear, plus new wedding outfit shoes and dresses.

Bonmarché has new SS25 outdoor clothing ranges and swimsuits, Valentines outfits, new Dash SS25 clothing ranges, jumpers and partywear and lingerie ranges.

Fable England has new SS25 Running Bunny and Wonderland ranges of bags and scarves, plus new accessories and core jewellery ranges.

River Island has new Butter Yellow themed ranges, a new Jo Horner collaboration, “New Year New Look” ranges, Pantone Mocha Mousse looks for spring.

Peacocks has a new Michael Owen and Louise Redknapp SS25 Edit, new SS25 clothing, jumpers and fashion, Caprice and Grinch pyjama collections, new womenswear.

Roman Originals has new SS25 Petite imagery, more AW24 imagery for Petite, Curve and Dusk ranges of womenswear for day wear and for big events.

Dune London has new shoes, bags and accessories for early 2025.

Dune London Mens has new shoes and trainers for early 2025.

Barbour has new ranges of clothing, boots and accessories for SS25 for men and women and the new range of gift accessories.

Joe Browns has new SS25 clothing for men and women plus shoes, boots, jewellery and accessories including purses, bags and shopping baskets.

Celtic &Co has new clothing, sandals, shoes, scarves, and accessories for SS25.

M&S has a new Goodmove collection of outdoor sports and athleisure wear modelled by Olympian Alex Scott.

Curvy Kate has new Swerve, Suspend, Suspense, Serpent, Opulence, Indulgence, Eos, Entwined, Zen, Victory, Wild One, Strawberry Crush, Ornate and more ranges of lingerie. Plus new ranges of swimwear for SS25.

F&F has a new Kate Ferdinand F&F Active collaboration of athleisure wear for January, new SS25 ranges of women's clothing and accessories.

Primark has new bags, lingerie and nightwear for Valentines, new SS25 dresses and skirts, Performance 2025 ranges of athleisure clothes, shoes and bags, plus kids ranges, Premier Division football outfits, a new Rita Ora occasion wear collaboration of clothing, a new accessory and ski range plus new shoes, bags, jewellery and accessories.

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

Scamp & Dude has new leopard print dresses for AW24.

John Lewis has new Anyday and And/Or SS25 clothing, shoes and accessories for women and men, a Dream Dress Edit featuring Whistles, Sister Jane, Reiss, Phase Eight and more clothing ranges for women.

TK Maxx has new clothing, shoes, boots, jewellery, make up and accessories for SS25.

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

Lipsy has new images for the New Year and the new season.

Oliver Bonas has new February, March and April 2025 uploads of jewellery, women’s clothing, bags, shoes and accessories as well as new ranges for the New Year and SS25.

Sims Wear has new menswear ranges for SS25.

Lola Starr has new sustainable activewear for the January and February bounce back.

Sainsbury’s Beauty has new BeautyPro, Dr Pawpaw, Isle of Paradise and Sundae wellness ranges and beauty treatments. 

See additional new clothing and accessories images from

National Trust Cotton Traders George at Asda

Home, garden and food

Home Bargains has new solar-powered lights for the garden, new home exercise accessories, Mediterranean and Travellers Bazaar ranges, homeware from SS25 for the bedroom, bathroom and living rooms plus candles, diffusers, glasses and soft furnishings.

Matalan has new Easter decorations and home ranges, Valentine’s gifts, SS25 homeware images for the dining room, bedroom, bathroom and garden, new Connie the Cockapoo range.

Treats by Mars has new Snickers and Galaxy ranges. 

Primark has new soft furnishings, furniture and homeware for SS25.

B&M has new Rustic Charm homeware ranges for SS25, including cushions, mirrors, vases and incense burners.

Ivyline has new plant pots, fountains and storage for the garden.

Dobbies Garden Centres has new Valentine’s presents, outdoor furniture, barbecues, accessories, kids' swimming pools and pots for SS25, Mother’s Day 2025 gifts, plus Winter gardening tools.

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

Hobbycraft has Easter decoration and food ideas. 

Cult Furniture has new ranges for SS25.

Online Home Shop has new storage solutions, 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.

Homesense has a new Outdoor Taste of the Med and Summer in the Souk ranges of furniture, homeware and kitchenware, plus indoors furniture and homeware for SS25.

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

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

Habitat has new SS25 homeware and furniture, plus new furniture for setting up your own home office. 

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

M&S has new furniture, soft furnishings and kitchenware for SS25, gifts for pets, National Gallery collaboration, and new Fearne Cotton Happy Place range.

George Home has new Dark Garden SS25 interiors ranges, Stacey Solomon collaborations on cookware, bedding, dining, and homeware.

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

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.

See additional new home images from

John Lewis Designers Guild Jan Constantine Fatface Primark

DIARY

PRShots Retail Calendar Alerts

Days until Valentine’s Day – 37

Days until Mother’s Day - 81

Days until Easter - 102
 

How to get your brand in the media in January

January is all about fitness and health and getting back on track after a Christmas and New Year holiday break. So, clothes-wise it’s all about clothing for the gym and exercise, so make sure if you have anything relevant that it’s flagged up with keywords like fit, exercise and gym. 

The monthlies are also starting to prepare for Valentine’s Day next month, so get any relevant clothes, accessories and gifts uploaded and keyword them with valentine. They’re also looking forward to next season so make sure anything SS25 is flagged on your drops.

Plus, as we’re still mid-winter there will still be searches for anything cosy, so pyjamas, slippers, coats, hygge, winter warmers, knitwear, scarves and everything warm. 

January is also Veganuary (in 2024 over 1.8m people worldwide signed up for it! ) and it’s also Dry January so it’s a good idea to make sure you have vegan-friendly products and non-alcoholic products labelled on your media centre, plus anything that’s healthy that fits in with resetting your life. 

If you sell gin and anything gin-related then it’s also Ginuary!  It’s also Walk Your Dog Month, so anything dog-related would be good.

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.

January Diary - Weeks/Months

Houseplant Week (6th Jan – 12th Jan)

The London Textile Fair (14th Jan – 15th Jan)

Cervical Cancer Prevention Week (20th Jan – 26th Jan)

The Furniture Show NEC Birmingham (19th Jan – 22nd Jan)

Diary - Days

8th – Diet Searches peak

12th – Alcohol-free searches peak

14th - Orthodox New Year

17th - Ditch Your Resolution Day #DitchYourResolutionDay

20th - Have a Brew and Chat Monday/Blue Monday

20th – Health Food Searches Peak

20th – Martin Luther King Day (US)

21st – National Hugging Day (US)

25th – Burns Night

25th - Dydd Santes Dwynwen (St Dwynwen's Day)

26th – Australia Day

26th – Indian Republic Day

27th – Chocolate Cake Day (US)

27th – Holocaust Memorial Day (US)

28th – Data Privacy Day

29th – Lunar New Year / Chinese New Year (The year of the Snake)

29th – Valentine’s Day searches rise

31st – Tax return payments are due today

NB - All dates have been checked, but some events may change due to unforeseen circumstances or have not been fully confirmed for 2025 by the authorities controlling the event(s).