E-commerce & Retail News Hub
UK tech funding roundup: This week’s deals from Edra to First Concepts
This week’s UK tech funding deals include workflow automation platform Edra, cancer diagnostics group Spotlight Pathology and more. UKTN tracked £53.69m worth of UK tech investment this week (16 March to 20 March), a 97% week-on-week decrease across ...
One year on from retail’s devastating cyber attacks, what’s changed?
It’s been twelve months since a wave of sophisticated cyber attacks shook the retail industry. In the space of a few chaotic weeks, ecommerce platforms were knocked offline, supply chains faltered, and retailers were forced to confront the uncomforta...
Spotlight Pathology secures new funding for AI cancer diagnostics
Spotlight Pathology, a spinout from the University of Manchester, has secured a new investment of £1.4m to accelerate the commercial rollout of its AI cancer diagnostics product. Spotlight Pathology is developing AI-powered tools for diagnosing blood...
The Works to abandon ecommerce as it refocuses on store‑first growth
The Works has announced an immediate shutdown of its ecommerce operations as part of a wider shift toward a streamlined, store‑led operating model, according to reporting by Retail Gazette. The decision marks a significant pivot for the value-focused...
Middle East escalation puts retail supply chains under severe pressure
Retail industry experts urge retailers to stress‑test contingency plans as lead‑time uncertainty grows. With tension ramping up in the Middle East, and the war showing no signs of ending, it’s increasingly inevitable that retail supply chains will be...
Metrocentre shopping centre to roll out new independent brands space
Metrocentre shopping centre is set to launch a new space for independent brands. The UK’s second largest shopping centre, which is based in Gateshead, will refurbish and reposition its “The Forum” section to create “The Crescent”. This will form a “n...
GeoSurge founder: Don’t wait for permission
Francisco Vigo is the co-founder and chief executive of GeoSurge, a London-based deep-tech AI company that tracks, improves and monitors how large language models represent businesses across markets. In this week’s Founder in Five Q&A , Vigo discusse...
Matalan launches spring campaign to strengthen womenswear offering
Matalan aims to strengthen its womenswear offering with a new spring campaign for its Spring/Summer collection. Titled ‘ Style for Every Moment ‘, it will roll out across TV, video-on-demand, social media and digital channels. This will run alongside...
SMEs shine as UK capital lending surges
Capital lending to UK businesses surged in 2025, driven primarily by small and medium-sized businesses, according to findings from UK Finance. In its latest Business Finance Review, the group found that UK high street banks increased gross business l...
LK Bennett deepens clearance sale to offload stock
LK Bennett has deepened its clearance sale as it seeks to shift its stock. The luxury womenswear specialist has extended its discounts across all products from its initial 40 per cent to “at least” 60 per cent, Drapers reported. The retailer’s closin...
Agentic healthcare platform Flexzo AI raises £9m
Flexzo AI, an agentic workforce system for healthcare providers has completed a $12m (£8.9m) Series A funding round led by Octopus Ventures. The hospital workforce management tool provider said the financing will support the rollout of its platform a...
Unilever confirms approach for foods division amid break-up speculation
Unilever has confirmed it has received an approach for its foods division, as speculation continues over a potential separation of the business. The FMCG giant said it is currently in discussions with McCormick & Company, Inc. following an inbound of...
Currys triples London HQ footprint as hybrid working strategy drives expansion
Currys has nearly tripled the size of its London headquarters at WeWork’s 10 York Road in Waterloo, as the retailer doubles down on its hybrid working model. The omnichannel electricals retailer will expand its space from 6,700 sq ft to 18,200 sq ft,...
The Works exits ecommerce to focus on store-led growth as profits outlook improves
The Works has shut down its ecommerce operations with immediate effect as it looks to simplify its business model and double down on its store-led strategy. The value retailer said it will transition to a non-transactional website, with the online ch...
Footasylum appoints former Gymshark executive Hannah Mercer as CEO
Footasylum has appointed former Gymshark executive Hannah Mercer as chief executive officer, as the retailer looks to accelerate its growth and international expansion. Mercer will take up the role from the start of May, bringing more than three deca...
UK risks ‘jobless generation’ as retail employment falls to record low
The UK retail sector could be at risk of creating a “jobless generation” after employment in the industry fell to its lowest level on record, according to new data from the Office for National Statistics. Retail employment averaged 2.81 million roles...
Consumer confidence slides as geopolitical tensions add pressure to UK retail
UK consumer confidence has fallen sharply in March, adding further strain to an already pressured retail sector as geopolitical uncertainty weighs on spending intentions. According to GlobalData’s latest UK Consumer Sentiment report, future consumer ...
Game closes final standalone stores as high street presence ends
Game will close its remaining standalone stores next month, bringing an end to its presence as a dedicated high street retailer after more than three decades. The video games retailer has confirmed that its final three stores, located in Dudley, Lanc...
Ikea owner Ingka to cut 800 roles as CEO says it has “grown too complex”
Ingka Group, the largest Ikea retailer, is set to cut around 800 roles as part of a wider move to simplify its organisation and sharpen its focus on core retail operations. The restructuring will primarily impact Group Functions and is designed to st...
Spar taps Mr Motivator for spring campaign to drive footfall and frequency
Spar has launched a UK-wide marketing campaign fronted by Mr Motivator as it looks to drive footfall, increase visit frequency and reinforce its role within local communities. The ‘ Fuel Your Spring ’ campaign, which went live today, centres on a mon...
John Lewis and LABRUM unveil second collaboration
John Lewis has unveiled its second collaboration with British menswear brand LABRUM. The new collection launched this week and combines John Lewis’ “commitment to quality” with LABRUM’s “narrative style”. It features Nomoli and Adinkra symbols, which...
AI use is outpacing AI skills
Since 2022, the use of AI in the workplace has been consistently climbing, with both businesses and politicians encouraging the establishment of an AI-enabled workforce. Though it is clear that AI is a part of many people’s daily professional routine...
Zopa Bank earnings soar in third year of profit
Pre-tax profits at the digital bank Zopa have surged to £65m in the London fintech’s third year of profitability. The bank reported a pre-tax profit of £65m for the financial year ended December 2025, almost double the previous year. The strong perfo...
OPINION: Five forces reshaping the checkout in Germany
Although its retail sector is known for stability and operational discipline , at the checkout in Germany, significant changes are underway, says Jean-Philippe Niedergang, acting group CEO / EMEA-PACIFIC-LATAM CEO, Castles Technology. Rising labour c...
AI has yet to hurt SME jobs despite massive adoption
The incorporation of AI by small businesses has yet to meaningfully impact the size of workforces, despite soaring adoption rates, new research suggests. According to research from the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) in partnership with Atos, more...
Ex-Klarna executive joins Tide’s C-suite
Bernie Miles, a former executive at buy now pay later (BNPL) firm Klarna, has joined the C-suite of fintech group Tide. Miles joins the SME financial platform as its new chief data and technology officer where he will oversee the business’s push into...
Unilever weighs food business separation in major strategic pivot
Unilever is exploring a potential separation of its food division in a move that would mark one of the most significant strategic overhauls in its modern history. According to reports, the FMCG giant is in early-stage discussions with advisers about ...
Is Sainsbury’s ‘misleading the public’ with freshly baked marketing claims?
Sainsbury’s has reportedly confirmed that it no longer makes any bread from scratch in its in-store bakeries, as scrutiny grows over how supermarkets market “freshly baked” products. In a response to the Real Bread Campaign, a Sainsbury’s customer ca...
Northern tech sectors to receive billion-pound boost
The Chancellor has announced a £1.7bn investment package that will go towards scaling the tech and industrial strengths of various cities in northern England. Part of a larger previously announced £2.3bn industrial investment package, the new funding...
DFS nearly doubles profit despite footfall slump as wet weather hits retail
Furniture retailer DFS has almost doubled its half-year profit despite a slowdown in store footfall. The London-listed group reported a pre-tax profit of £30m for the first half, up from £16m in the same period last year, as revenue rose nine per cen...