THE boss of Sainsbury’s is hoping for better weather and another England Euros victory to boost sales.
Its shoppers have cut their spending on homeware by 4.3 per cent in the last three months, with rainy spells keeping them away.
Sales at catalogue retailer Argos, which it bought in 2016, also fell by 6.2 per cent.
But the recent warmer weather meant Sainsbury’s sold more fans last week than in all the rest of the year.
Shoppers also rushed to buy paddling pools, doubling sales compared to the same time last year.
And garden furniture sales climbed by 80 per cent.
Chief executive Simon Roberts is upbeat about the prospects of both Sainsbury’s and the Three Lions — despite supporters’ frustration at boss Gareth Southgate due to their poor displays.
He said of the nail-biting win over Slovakia: “After Sunday’s thriller, everyone wants to get behind the team — we expect that a lot of people will want to invite friends round for barbecues and beers at home. We’re ready for that.”
He said football fever has helped the chain to sell 25 per cent more TVs year on year, while large screen sales have grown faster than ever.
Grocery sales have also climbed, rising 4.8 per cent over the last three months, as people seek to do bigger and less frequent shops with the decline of remote work.
Mr Roberts said shoppers “are still watching every penny in their groceries” but are keen to track down good value.
He said quality and low cost were the reasons its Taste the Difference range was growing the fastest.
Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, agreed that the chain’s food business was “trucking along nicely” but non-food items, including those sold at Argos, were not doing so well.
He said: “Sainsbury’s has the same nagging feeling as the England football team — it eventually scores a goal but you know it could do a lot better.”
Some experts note that Argos has become a profit drain, as electronics sales continue to fall with shoppers prioritising essentials. Sophie Lund-Yates, lead equity analyst at Gargreaeves Lansdown, said that the “Argos albatross around its neck can’t be ignored”.
MARKS & SPENCER has vowed to stay in city centres after shareholders criticised bosses for moving some stores to out-of-town developments.
Its chairman, Archie Norman, insisted: “We haven’t given up on the high street.”
The firm backed up its words at its AGM yesterday, announcing plans to invest £38million in new high street stores in Bristol and Bath.
The openings are set to create around 250 jobs.
M&S chief executive Stuart Machin said closures, refurbishments and relocations follow a previous lack of investment.
Bonuses and long-term share awards saw Mr Machin’s pay package leap by around £2million to £4.7million last year.
RYANAIR recorded its busiest month ever for passenger numbers in June, with 19.3million tickets booked.
That was more than a tenth higher than the 17.4million bookings in June 2023.
Meanwhile, Manchester Airports Group said it beat pre-pandemic levels for the first time, with 61.3million people travelling through its Manchester, Stansted and East Midlands hubs in the year to the end of March.
SHARES in footwear chain Shoe Zone fell 15 per cent yesterday after it issued a profit warning.
The retailer said it sold fewer shoes than expected between April and June due to high shipping costs and “unseasonal weather conditions”.
As a result, it lowered its profit forecasts for the year down to £10million.
It is over a third lower than its original expectation of making £15.2million in 2024.
The firm had already cut its annual profits guidance to £13.8million when announcing its interim results in May.
It said overseas deliveries had become pricier as container prices continue to rise due to a reduction in the supply of shipping vessels, and the re-route away from the Suez Canal.
It also blamed the increase in the National Living Wage to £11.44, which was higher than it had anticipated.
Shoe Zone said the pay ruling had added at least £400,000 to its costs between April and October.
A TEN-week run of falling petrol pump prices has come to an end following a rise in oil values and wholesale costs, the AA warned.
The motoring body has urged drivers to buy fuel “sooner rather than later” in case prices rise. It said the average price of a litre of petrol at UK forecourts fell from 150.1p on April 24 to 144.5p at the end of last week.
Diesel had dropped from 158.3p to 149.6p.
But a barrel of oil rose from $80 in June to more than $85 over the past fortnight.
THE average monthly rent charged outside London has hit a record high of £1,316.
Property site Rightmove said they were now 7 per cent higher than a year ago.
In London, the advertised average is £2,652 per month, 4 per cent higher than last year.
Rightmove said the pace of rental growth had eased from a peak of 12 per cent two years ago but remains high.
It said: “The next government should be prioritising planning, house building and encouraging more supply into the rental market.”
SOME 879 UK businesses have filed for administration so far this year, up 16 per cent from 2023.
Retail, manufacturing, construction, real estate and hospitality were the worst-hit sectors, according to law firm Shakespeare Martineeau.
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