Shoppers to face fresh price hikes as stores, suppliers pass on costs

  • Grocery costs seen rising further in 2023 -executives, analysts
  • Input costs exacerbated by Ukraine war
  • Retailers seeking to pass on high raw material costs
  • Unilever, Nestle, Danone to report results this month
  • Cost inflation likely to be a feature – analysts

LONDON, Feb 8 (Reuters) – Shoppers around the world will pay even more for groceries this year than they did in 2022, according to retailers, consumer goods firms and investors, unless commodity costs decline or the shift to cheaper store-brand products accelerates.

Retailers and consumer goods producers have been stuck in tough price negotiations for more than a year now, with friction beginning in 2021 over COVID-related supply chain logjams.

This has since ballooned into fights over the high cost of raw materials and energy in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with rising prices of basic foodstuffs from bread to milk and meat exacerbating a cost-of-living crisis in Europe.

Britons paid a record 16.7% more for food in the four weeks to Jan. 22 compared to the same period last year, according to research firm Kantar. The U.S. food index, including meals eaten at home and in cafes and restaurants, increased 10.4% for the year ended in December.

Mark Schneider, CEO of the world’s biggest food group Nestle, last week told a German newspaper it would have to raise prices of its food products further this year to offset higher production costs that it has yet to fully pass on to consumers.

“Investors will pay a premium for companies that exhibit pricing power in their portfolio without adversely impacting volumes and market share,” Jack Martin, a fund manager at Oberon Investments, said.

Big, packaged-goods companies’ margins have been squeezed by higher input costs for over a year as the price of ingredients like wheat and sunflower

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Scentre sales hit a record $26.7 billion as shoppers flock back to malls

To keep the malls relevant, Scentre completed a record 3409 lease deals during the year, an increase of 912 on the year prior. This included 2232 renewals and 1177 new merchants, of which 288 are new brands to the portfolio.

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For the year, the retail landlord reported funds from operations (FFO) of $1.04 billion, up 20.6 per cent on the 2022 year, and a final distribution of 8.2¢, taking the annual payment to15.75¢, payable on February 28.

Total occupancy was 98.9 per cent, with dining, fashion, health and beauty and jewellery tenants all recording sales growth of close to 30 per cent over the year. The much-maligned department and discount department sales were also stronger at 17 per cent and 21.1 per cent respectively.

Scentre Group also has a hefty development pipeline, and in the past year completed Stage 1 of the $355 million investment in Westfield Knox in Melbourne, including new Woolworths and ALDI supermarkets which opened in December 2022.

There has also been upgrades at Westfield Mt Druitt, including a new rooftop dining, entertainment and leisure precinct, and at Westfield Penrith, with a new fresh food precinct featuring Coles, ALDI, and a Tong Li supermarket.

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Rusanow said there was also evidence that shoppers prefer to come back to bricks and mortar stores, and tenants are responding by offering interactive experiences and a wider range of goods that can’t be bought online.

“What we saw during last year is that that level of penetration of online actually reduced back to pre-pandemic levels. And people are happy to leave their homes and come out and interact on a physical level,” he said.

In a recent survey of retailers by CBRE, it reveals there are new store openings on the drawing board amid a renewed focus on bricks-and-mortar

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Haircut 100 cover Harry Styles’ ‘As It Was’ in Maida Vale studios

Haircut 100 have covered Harry Styles‘ hit ‘As It Was’ live at BBC’s iconic Maida Vale studios.

The ’80s new wave band performed a set for Radio 2 as part of Piano Room Month that was broadcast yesterday (February 16) and were accompanied by the BBC Concert Orchestra for their cover. They also revisited two of their classic hits, ‘Love Plus One’ and ‘Fantastic Day’, elsewhere in the set, which you can listen to in full here.

“It’s a great song, isn’t it? [It’s] so catchy,” said frontman Nick Heyward when Radio 2’s Ken Bruce asked him why they had chosen to cover ‘As It Was’.

Haircut 100 were only active between 1981-1984 but have since reunited. “We’re back together till death us do part. This is it for life now,” Heywood said. “It’s not just for Christmas, Haircut 100 is for life.”

artist.jpg” alt=”Harry Styles” width=”2000″ height=”1270″ srcset=”https://www.nme.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/harry-styles-brits-2023-artist.jpg 2000w, https://www.nme.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/harry-styles-brits-2023-artist-400×254.jpg 400w, https://www.nme.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/harry-styles-brits-2023-artist-800×508.jpg 800w, https://www.nme.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/harry-styles-brits-2023-artist-696×442.jpg 696w, https://www.nme.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/harry-styles-brits-2023-artist-1392×884.jpg 1392w, https://www.nme.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/harry-styles-brits-2023-artist-1068×678.jpg 1068w” sizes=”(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px”/
Harry Styles CREDIT: Dave J Hogan/Getty Images

The band was also asked about their music being heard by younger audiences for the first time. “It’s like a second hand shop, isn’t it? But it’s new to you when you buy it, it’s a new outfit to you,” Heywood said.

The band’s 1982 debut album ‘Pelican West’ is about to be re-released. They are also set to play a one-off reunion show at London’s O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire in May 13 and told Bruce that they hope to tour later in the year.

Meanwhile, Styles took home four gongs at the BRIT Awards 2023 last weekend, including Song Of The Year for ‘As It Was’. Having also won the awards for Best Album, Best Pop/R&B Artist and Artist Of The Year, Styles

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Job cuts: The retailers that have made redundancies in 2023

The retailers making job cutsjob cuts“/

Nearly 15,000 job cuts have been made in retail so far this year in the UK, according to industry research published this week in a “brutal” start to 2023.

Some 14,874 roles have been cut or made redundant since the start of 2023 as rising costs pile pressure on retailers, according to data from the Centre of Retail Research.

Retail Gazette rounds up the retailers that are axing jobs this year.


M&Co

M&Co

M&Co plunged into administration in December and although it was rescued by Yours Clothing’s owner, its 170 store estate will close this spring, resulting in the loss of almost 2,000 jobs.

After M&Co appointed administrators for a second time at the end of last year, after previously collapsing in 2020, AK Retail Holdings bought the brand and intellectual property of M&Co.

However, the purchase did not include physical stores, meaning they will now close down at Easter.


Paperchase

Paperchase

Tesco bought the Paperchase brand and related IP in a pre-pack deal last month after it plunged into administration, however, it did not take its stores.

Therefore all 106 UK stores, which employ 800 staff, will close in the coming weeks.


Tesco

Tesco

At the start of the year Tesco unveiled plans to axe its remaining food counters and is rolling out a new store management structure, in a suite of store changes that will put more than 2,000 roles at risk.

Over the last couple of years the grocery giant has introduced a new management structure in approximately 350 of its smaller superstores.

The supermarket has also proposed the closure of eight pharmacies, where there are other pharmacies within one mile of a store.

Tesco said all affected colleagues will be offered alternatives roles in-store, adding “where we can work with a third party to offer a

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Gucci-sponsored LACMA Art+Film Gala Unveils 2022 Honorees and Event Date

Artist Helen Pashgian and filmmaker Park Chan-wook are the chosen honorees at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s Art+Film Gala this year, expected to be held on Nov. 5.

Co-chaired by LACMA trustee Eva Chow and actor Leonardo DiCaprio, 2022 will mark its 11th annual event. Chow and DiCaprio have been supporting the museum’s film initiatives since 2011. Gucci continues as the longtime presenting sponsor, with additional support provided by Audi for the fourth year.

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“I’m so pleased that we will be honoring Helen Pashgian, who has played an indelible role in the Southern California art community and has been a friend of the museum for so long,” said LACMA chief executive office and Wallis Annenberg director Michael Govan in a statement. “We are also excited to recognize Park Chan-wook, whose unforgettable films never fail to show us the power of cinema. Honoring these two artists together continues the vitally important dialogue between art and film that this event supports.”

Living and working in Pasadena, Calif., 88-year-old Pashgian is an American visual artist and figure in the Light and Space art movement of the ’60s. LACMA presented “Helen Pashgian: Light Invisible” in 2014, the first large-scale sculptural installation by the artist.

Chan-wook, 58, is a South Korean film director, producer, screenwriter and former film critic. He is best known for his films “Joint Security Area,” “Thirst,” “The Handmaiden,” “Decision to Leave” and what fans call “The Vengeance Trilogy” with “Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance,” “Oldboy” and “Lady Vengeance.”

LACMA’s star-studded Art+Film Gala honors artists and filmmakers, and raises funds for the museum’s initiatives, exhibitions and programming. Canceled in 2020 due to COVID-19, last year’s in-person event recognized artists Amy Sherald, Kehinde Wiley and filmmaker Steven Spielberg, raising $5 million and bringing the

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