JJB struggling with stock issues
Sports retailer JJB has today announced difficulty with stock is holding up the business in the short to medium term. Despite the fact that the company was effectively bailed-out by a financial restructuring and an agreement with shop landlord last month, the company has announced that while suppliers have agreed to work with JJB in the future it will not be until the first quarter of 2010 before the shops are fully stocked.
As a consequence, like-for-like sales in the 20 weeks to mid-December were down 29% and the company is obviously struggling to give customers what they want at this time of year. The situation is slightly complicated by the fact JJB started its Christmas sale on 25 November last year but this year it will not begin until 26 December.
While these figures are obviously disappointing, there was no mention of any further immediate financial issues although trading is "difficult". The £100 million fund-raising exercise last month has strengthened the balance sheet and we will only see the real benefit as and when the shops are fully stocked. Whether this situation will be replicated across the sports retail sector, and the retail sector in general, remains to be seen.
Share this..
Related stories
Are interest rates set to fall by a further 1%?
There appears to be a growing consensus in the City that UK base rates will fall by at least 1% at the next MPC meeting with the potential for further falls if this does not stimulate any type of improvement in the UK economy. Taking rates down to 2.5% is unheard of in recent times and with the potential to move them lower this is a reflection of the serious nature of the ongoing recession.
...
Have UK Interest Rates Bottomed Out?
While just a few weeks ago the prospect of further reductions in UK interest rates seemed to be a certainty, things have really changed over the last couple of weeks. First we saw signs that inflation was making a comeback and set to creep past the 4% level and then we started to hear concerns from within the Bank of England with even the most optimistic of members admitting that interest rates c...
Read MorePublic sector wages increased by up to 20%
There is dismay in the private sector today with news that the public sector wage bill has seen a massive rise over the last 12 months. Figures released by the Office for National Statistics show that senior council workers have seen their salaries increase by up to 20% over the last 12 months while public service administrative professionals have seen their income increased by just over 10%. This...
Read MoreBoris Johnson issues a hands-off warning to the EU
The Mayor of London Boris Johnson has today issued a hands-off warning to the EU which appears to be determined to reduce the influence of financial markets in the UK and take control of the European financial sector. A number of specific regulations have been introduced by the EU which many people believe are targeted purely and simply at the London market which is officially the number one finan...
Read MoreScottish executive under pressure as more job losses announced
When contact lens maker Bausch and Lomb today announced 500 job losses in West Lothian it is clear that nobody in the Scottish parliament expected this. The company is effectively transferring production from West Lothian to the US and Ireland as it looks to consolidate in these difficult economic times. However, a number of Scottish MPs are now calling on the Scottish executive to step in again a...
Read More